


But Satisfaction Brought it Back

by Broccoli2002



Category: Dead by Daylight (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, I have no idea what to tag, I honestly have lost track of this story someone save me, Is this going to be even a roleswap anymore who knows, Quite slow, Roleswap AU, probably some gore, train wreck waiting to happen, tumblr inspired
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-22
Updated: 2017-10-19
Packaged: 2018-12-05 10:51:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 35,687
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11576571
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Broccoli2002/pseuds/Broccoli2002
Summary: Jake notices weird things in the Nightmare. Is it all just coincidences, or is there some semblance of clues left to tie them all together? However, the Entity won't just let him do whatever he wants. This will become the catalyst for the shitstorm that will happen, with him right in the middle. As the saying goes, 'curiosity killed the cat'.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi there! I'm new to writing, so please go easy on me. I wanted to try something scary and angsty-ish, and DBD came to my mind. And since this fandom doesn't have a lot of fanfics, I tried to do something. But, I don't think it worked out well. So, yeah. Here's what I did at 3am in the morning. On a school night. I really should be doing my work.

The first sign was when Jake heard the shriek.

It was a quick trial, with everyone getting generators running in a short amount of time. They were at the Coldwind Farms, which Jake knew like the back of his hand, since he has been here multiple times. The Wraith, which was sent to be the killer of the trial, only managed to injure a few of them. Nothing healing couldn’t fix, albeit temporarily, until they got back to the campfire.

Jake was the last one to escape. He had to distract the Wraith, giving the injured Dwight and Meg some time to open the doors and leave. He ran around the arena, jumping across windows and pulling down pallets when needed. Jake wasn’t the fastest of the group, but he certainly wasn’t slow. He had no idea how long he was trapped in the Nightmare, but it did have some benefits to his physical fitness.

Jake vaulted across a fallen pallet, before making his way back to the door that Meg and Dwight were opening. Hopefully, Claudette made her way out with the door, too. Jake rushed towards the open door, now in his sights. He grinned, glad that everyone managed to survive this time. He was at the exit when he heard it.

A wailing shriek piercing through the air.

It was nothing Jake ever heard before. It was far different than the Wraith’s normal voice, and nothing like the other killers. It was even different from the Nurse’s yell, and she wouldn’t even be here in the first place. So, what was that?

Jake hesitated to leave, curiosity taking over the adrenaline in his body. He crouched and slowly made his way back to the area he heard the shriek from. Common sense told him to leave and survive, but common sense was out the window ever since they were here.

Well, might as well.

Jake crawled around the corn plants, trying to stay low and disturbing the plants as little as possible. He slowly moved towards the barn, where the sound was coming from. When he was close to the entrance, he heard another sound.

Sobbing.

What could that be, Jake thought to himself. There should be no one left, and he doubted that the Wraith would still be here. After all, the trial was sort of over, was it not? Well, Jake was still here, so the trial could be not over until he left.

Jake got onto his stomach, doing an army crawl to the entrance of the barn, and his eyes widened at what he saw. He stifled a gasp with his arm, trying to not make noise as much as possible. There was the Wraith, sitting in a dark corner of the barn. He was sobbing, black tears running off his face. The weapon he held during the trial was flung to the side, and the bell he carried beside the club. The Wraith was shivering, even though it was relatively warm.

“What…” Jake whispered to himself. The Wraith, an emotionless killer who managed to slaughter his friends multiple times, was crying? Why? And how? Jake, driven by his curiosity, slowly stood up, and walked silently to the crying killer. Every sane part of his mind is screaming at him, telling him that this was a bad idea and he should get the hell out of here.

Yet, something pulled him towards the despaired killer in front of him. Call it instinct, but he couldn’t leave the man alone.

He was in the middle of the barn when the Wraith looked up. Jake froze, not daring to move. Their eyes locked, and Jake gasped. He never actually got a good look at the Wraith, since he was running for his life, and he didn’t expect it.

The Wraith’s face was dark, with white stripes of paint going across his face. Bright glowing eyes met Jake’s, and his mouth was turned into a frown. However, that wasn’t the shocking part.

He had scars running across his face, some looking fresh. Tear stains were all over his face, some covering up the white paint. The cloth around his body looked freshly coated in blood, and Jake saw the despair in the eyes of the Wraith. Jake couldn’t comprehend how emotional the supposed emotionless killer in front of him was being.

The Wraith just stared, before looking away, and getting up. Jake backed up, before making a run for the exit. He had seen too much, and he knew he had to go. He ran out, returning to the mist, and soon arriving at the campfire that served as their home base. Everyone had left, probably to another trial, leaving Jake alone at the fireplace. He sat down by the campfire, thinking of what he just saw.

* * *

 The next sign were the crows.

Jake knew he had a natural attraction to animals. He did live in the woods while he ran away from home, and living there helped him understand animals and communicate with them.

So when he entered the Nightmare, he was shocked when he realized the abundant amount of crows flying about, within and outside of trials. The crows also had red eyes, which were definitely abnormal. This, combined with the Entity, which is said to watch over the trials and both sides, led Jake to believe the crows serve as the Entity’s eyes and ears.

Jake knew that the crows were all over the field in a trial, but what were they watching? If the killers were as bloodthirsty and emotionless as they seem to be, and the Entity powerful as it should be, then there really was no reason for it to watch the trials. It could just wait for the sacrifices given by the killer, or just watch from the sky, letting the killers go wild.

So why were the crows there? Jake wasn’t a genius, but he was not an idiot, by any chance. Something was amiss in the Nightmare, and he was close to figuring it out. He had mentioned this to his fellow survivors, but they decided that it was just the Entity playing tricks, or that it wanted a close view of what was happening. Jake accepted these theories, but something didn’t sit right with Jake’s honed natural instincts. If his hypothesis was right, then they needed to do something about it.

The only reason the Entity would have to keep a close eye, would be the killers.

The survivors were victims in the scenario. Run, survive, escape. They couldn’t do anything to get out otherwise, and are trapped in every way. They had no option. Live or die. They were stuck in this purgatory until the Entity got bored of them.

But the killers were different. They were the ones who supposedly work for the Entity. They were the ones with options. They could kill, do the Entity’s work and be the servants they were meant to be, or they could spare, thus betraying the Entity and siding with the survivors. Therefore, if the crows are there, they must be to keep the killers in line. Making sure they do their task of killing, and sacrificing the survivors to the Entity. There would be no reason for the crows to spectate the trial otherwise.

But that changes a lot of things.

If that was true, then the killers could be seen as the same as the survivors. People with no choices. They were as trapped as they were, with no choice but to kill. And that would mean that the Wraith _was_ sobbing in despair the other day, of the situation they were in. The scars could be caused by the Entity, for not sacrificing the survivors well enough. The four of them did escape that day, leaving the Entity possibly mad and unsatisfied, resulting in it lashing out on the Wraith. That could have been the shriek he heard.

The pieces began fitting in, and Jake shuddered at the grandness of this plan the Entity concocted. There was no way, right? It’s just his imagination, and he’s just going nuts. Jake sighed, before lying down on the earth. No, he’s thinking too much into it. That would mean that the killers were being forced to kill them, but if that was the case, why didn’t they show any signs of remorse? Yeah, that was it.

Jake got up when he heard groans coming from the mist. It seems everyone has returned from their trial. But, one last question lingered in his head.

Why did the crows like him so much?

* * *

The final sign was the voices.

Jake was once again in a trial, running for his dear life. It was the Nurse this round, with her strangled yells and moans. Jake moved quickly, while also making many turns. He knew the Nurse could warp, therefore making running in a straight line a terrible idea. Pulling down a pallet, Jake managed to stun the Nurse, giving him ample amount of time to escape. While the Nurse was distracted by Jake, Nea managed to get another generator, leaving them with only one more.

Jake ran into the ruins of the Crotus Prenn Asylum, seeing Dwight already on the generator on the lower floor. He crouched beside him, and began working on the generator as well. Jake fit the cogs in, untangled the wires, patched up the holes in some wires, and soon, it was good to go. Dwight nodded towards Jake, and they both moved slowly, leaving no tracks to alert the Nurse of their whereabouts.

However, a trial wasn’t that simple.

The Nurse warped towards Jake, and Jake and Dwight split to different directions. They agreed that if one of them was ever chased, that they would try to take the killer away from everyone. He tried to escape by repeatedly jumping across windows and turning quickly, but it seems the Nurse caught on. The next time Jake vaulted across a window, she was there, swinging her bonesaw. It caught Jake on his chest, leaving a slash from his left shoulder to his stomach. He yelled out, before running quickly while clutching the wound. He knew he probably won’t make it this round, but he’ll do his damn best to make sure he put up a fight before it. If he’s going down, he’ll be the distraction for the others to get out. A piece of his soul for the others. God, how cliché is that.

The Nurse did catch up, slashing at Jake’s back, and Jake crumpled to the ground. He groaned from the pain, feeling the blood leave his body from both sides. The green jacket he had on was soaked through, but it didn’t matter. It’ll be clean when he returns to the campfire. Jake felt his body float, and land onto the Nurse’s shoulder. He struggled as much as possible, but it didn’t work. With the aid of her powers, the Nurse had a strong grip on Jake.

Jake was brought to a hook, and he braced for the excruciating pain from his left shoulder once more. However, it didn’t come. Jake opened his eyes, seeing something that was shocking once again. The limbs of the Entity were stretching out towards him. Jake struggled, trying to get off the Nurse’s shoulder, and to crawl away from this as soon as possible. Whatever was happening, it was new, and in this world, keeping from change is the best you can do. And if the Entity is reaching for you abnormally, then you know something is up. The Nurse dropped Jake to the ground, causing him to groan, before backing up and watching from the side.

Jake tried, but it is impossible to outrun a deity, especially when you are wounded.

The Entity pierced through Jake’s right calf, causing him to lose balance and fall on the ground. He yelled, before feeling another pain flow through his body from his left thigh. Jake tried to grab onto something, anything, just to get out of the predicament he was in. Whether for better or worse, he knew something will happen to him. And he doubted the Entity would do anything good. Tears began pooling in Jake’s eyes, as he felt the arms circle around his torso. The Nurse was watching all of this, but something seemed different. Jake thought he saw the bag on the Nurse’s head dampen, and his ears picked up on a sound he have never heard from the killers.

Whimpers of fear.

Jake’s eyes widened, and the Nurse seemed to be looking towards Jake, with how her head was positioned. He heard a quiet voice, wondering where it came from.

 _“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry, forgive me, I’m sorry,”_ was all it said, repeated over and over in a never-ending mantra. Jake let out a gasp at the feminine voice. The only female voice near all of it to be in hearing range was the Nurse. Was she talking to him? Or the Entity? Jake screamed as he felt one more arm enter his body, this time piercing through his chest. Jake felt his heartbeat ringing in his ears, before slowly falling flat, fading away. He felt the pain in his body envelop him, and soon he faded into unconsciousness.

However, before he did, one last thing ringed in his ears.

_“I’m sorry, you’ll have to become one of us, forgive me, I’m sorry.”_


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Honestly what am I doing at this point. Well, since this chapter might get intense, I'll leave a warning here. If you have a weak heart, can't handle gory subjects, are above the age of 60, or is pregnant with a child, please be aware that some bloody stuff happens. Whatever happens after is none of my concern. If otherwise, you're free to go. Enjoy my work done by my 2am tiredness. I need to sleep.

Jake was trapped in a black abyss, floating around, doing absolutely nothing. Jake was scared, no, _terrified_ , but he tried to let it not show. He was known for being the calm one in the group of survivors, and he knew that it would be the one trait that can save him in situations like this.

 ** _“Hello, Jake Park,”_** a voice said, echoing in the darkness. It was a deep and powerful voice, with a masculine tone to it.

“Who’s there!?” Jake yelled, and the voice chuckled, a deep chuckle which shook Jake’s body to the core.

 ** _“I am the one you call the Entity. I have brought you here for a very special reason.”_** Jake was shocked at the response. He wasn’t expecting a straightforward answer. It then hit him that whatever was happening here was not good at all, and that he needed to get out.

“And what would that be?” Jake managed to keep his voice steady, but internally he was shaking. He knew that either he was going to die, or by some miracle, he would be let out into the world again. One of those options is very appealing, but Jake doubted that would happen.

 ** _“I have brought you here after watching the many trials that you have attended. Of the many survivors I brought in, you caught my eye. You were special,”_** the Entity said, its arms growing out of the ground around Jake. At this point, Jake was starting to panic.

 ** _“You managed to figure out my plot, and my servants seem to like you. I applaud you for that, and congratulate you for being the first survivor to figure it out since the Nightmare began.”_** The arms slowly grew longer and longer, the sharp tips all pointed towards Jake. Jake was panicking, trying to stay away from the arms as far as possible, not very effective when they surround you.

 ** _“But, see, I can’t have you ratting out my plans to the other survivors and killers, now can I? Not that they’ll believe you, but better safe than sorry. It can be easily fixed. All I need to do is keep you under my control.”_** Jake shook at what the Entity was hinting. If he was going to do what Jake thinks he will, then Jake would much rather kill himself. He will not.

 ** _“Oh, you have no choice in the matter. Your fate has been sealed, ever since you stepped into the nightmare. Now, you are the first that I shall try this on, so forgive me if some features turn out…undesirable.”_** Jake shuddered, before he felt something spear his right arm. He screamed, as more arms of the Entity attacked Jake’s limbs.

“S-Stop it…” Jake said, as arms burst through his legs, stomach, and chest. Before long, Jake looked like a pin cushion, with all of the Entity’s arms going through his body. Blood flowed from the wounds, spreading out into the darkness that surrounded them.

 ** _“Oh, I’m not stopping anytime soon, Jake. I can tell you right now, this is just the beginning.”_** The arms pierced further, causing Jake to scream once more. He felt a headache, so strong that it began hurting his brain, causing aches to pulse through his body.

Jake felt something in his mind snap, and his eyes rolled back into his skull. He questioned how he was still alive, before he began losing consciousness, and his grip on his sanity. He felt another being, a feral instinct, overcome his body.

 ** _“Yes, let it control you, take over your mind, drive you insane. Until you reach the breaking point and fall right off. Wonderful. This turned out better than I thought.”_** Jake could barely hear the echoic voice of the Entity, his mind not being able to process what was happening.

Jake didn’t even realize that the arms were gone until he moved his arms against his will. His eyes gleamed in the darkness, no longer having that warm brown that he was born with. Instead, it was replaced with a blood red, tears of black falling from them.

Jake screamed as he felt his body pulse, his limbs flaring up with pain. He felt something about them change, but was not able to pinpoint what it exactly was. He could barely keep his eyes open, and his vision was blurry from the huge amounts of black tears.

 ** _“You were a wonderful test subject, Jake Park. Now, return, and everything will be back to normal. Or so it shall seem…”_** Jake felt the tiredness from the trial prior and whatever happened here take over his body. He soon fell into unconsciousness, the world around him spinning as he tried to get his grip onto reality.

* * *

 

“Jake…Jake!” Dwight yelled, causing Jake to stir awake. He glanced around him, noticing the change in his senses immediately. His vision was better exponentially, being able to see the smallest details on their surroundings, such as the texture of the leaves and trees. He could hear even the smallest movements, and the rustles of Dwight’s clothing. The scent of blood and ash entered his nose, Jake grimaced at the metallic scent. The heat of the nearby fireplace felt even warmer, causing sweat to form on Jake’s forehead.

“Wh…Wha?” Jake slowly got up, getting confused. Wasn’t he, you know, half dying in the emptiness of the void that the Entity threw him into, grasping onto any semblance of sanity left in his soul? At that realization, Jake shot up, almost knocking Dwight in the head. Jake began panicking, looking down on his body, and he saw nothing unusual.

“Jake, are you okay?” Claudette asked from his right. Jake felt a headache coming, and everything around him began to get distorted. People around him began to twist and turn, and the landscape swirled. Jake groaned, gripping his head. Claudette, who had been sorting the med kit she had, immediately rushed to steady Jake.

“Wha…What happened?” Jake asked, trying to balance himself. Everything felt so overwhelming, every small detail chipping away at his sanity.

“You were sacrificed at a trial. You walked back from the forest, and you just collapsed. We tried to find any problems, but you seemed perfectly healthy, so we just moved you to the fireplace. Then you started moaning and rolling around, so I tried to wake you up, and here you are,” Dwight explained in one breath. Jake shook his head, trying to get his bearings when everything was spinning.

“Hey, we gotta go. I hope you’re good enough for a trial, Jake,” Meg piped up, as the fog began rolling in. Jake tried to snap out of the dizziness, before advancing into the fog, grabbing his toolbox along the way.

They appeared at the Macmillan Estate. The group was split up, but they all knew what they needed to do. Find generators, turn them on, open the exits, get out, and not get caught and sacrificed along the way. It’s what they’ve been doing for who knows how long.

Jake knew what his role was. He was the one who disrupted the hooks as much as possible. Lower the number of hooks on the arena, therefore increasing the chance of them getting away from the killer’s grasp, also allowing less of them to get hooked and sacrificed. That is, if the killer didn’t burn a Memento Mori.

Memento Moris were the best thing a killer could offer. It pleases the Entity so much that it doesn’t require sacrifices, allowing the killer to have its way with the survivors. With the Entity still watching, there was only one thing the killers could do.

Kill.

Jake shuddered as he thought of the last time a killer offered a Memento Mori, before focusing on the generator in front of him. Not important right now, time to survive and live. But something was nagging at him in his mind.

That weird encounter with the Entity.

Was it a dream? Or did it actually happen? He could feel some of his limbs aching, but other than that, he felt no different. His senses felt sharper, but was that him just being paranoid? Jake finished the generator in front of him, before looking around for some hooks to sabotage.

He crouched low and slowly moved, not drawing any attention to him. He could hear every small movement he made, and flinched whenever the grass seem to sway in the wind. It was then that he heard another distinct sound.

The wailing of the Nurse.

Pinpointing the killer definitely helped Jake out. This meant that he didn’t have to worry about traps from the Hag and the Trapper, watching out for the Shape, or the invisible Wraith.

Jake moved slowly, but faster than before, not having to be cautious of traps anymore. He soon found a hook near another generator, and began working on the hook first. That way, if the Nurse did find him, it would give him some time to try and get free.

Soon, the hook fell to the ground, destroyed. Jake worked on the generator now, fitting the cogs and rewiring the system. He worked fast, but not fast enough that he would make a mistake.

Before long, the generator was completed, just as he heard another on finish in the distance. This made Jake smile, before slowly looking around for another. Three down, two more to go.

Jake’s smile fell off his face when he heard a snap, and felt the familiar excruciating pain of his leg getting trapped in a bear trap. Jake cried and fell to his knees, struggling to get the trap off. Jake began panicking internally.

Wasn’t the killer the Nurse?

What the hell was this? The killer was the Nurse, so why did the Trapper’s traps appear out of nowhere? Jake felt a chill run down his spine, and the blood drained from his face. He was close. Jake could sense it.

Jake tried to stay as silent as he can, while still working on freeing himself from the trap. He needed to get out, and move quickly. He heard the footsteps before anything else.

They were rough, slow, and definitely there. This immediately knocks out the chance that it could be the Nurse. The Nurse floated, and her footsteps wouldn’t be this rough, considering her body weight and shape. But then he heard another wail, and Jake shuddered.

What the fuck was going on?

Jake managed to open the trap enough to free his leg, but the trap snapped shut after, creating more noise. Jake was silent for a moment, not daring to move. The footsteps seemed to freeze, but it soon walked away from Jake before long.

Jake was confused. The Trapper definitely heard the snap of the trap on his leg, and when he freed his leg. He knows, since the Trapper has heard other traps from further distances before. So why did it leave him alone? If the Trapper really was going to kill him, he would have beelined for him, immediately.

 _“Oh, he’s not here to kill. He’s here to scout you out, test your abilities. After all, the Entity was curious with you. A potential new ally to him, he says.”_ Jake tried to locate the voice, which seemingly came from within him.

 _“I’m over here, human.”_ Jake felt a pull to his right, and turned towards it. There, perched on a rock, was a crow. It looked just like the ones he has seen around the Nightmare, but he felt a special aura from this one.

 _“Pleasure to make your acquaintance, or some classy shit like that. I’m here on the Entity’s orders, to be your assistant in the hunt. After all, you don’t have special powers, or some bulk to hold your weight. I’m here to help guide you, so you have as high of a chance of pleasing him as any other killer.”_ The crow said, and Jake was still. He was slightly confused, but a major part of him knew what the bird was talking about.

He was destined to be a killer of the Nightmare, the servant of the Entity.

So, the Entity sent a crow to be his partner, as a way of making things fair for him. That was understandable, seeing as Jake was just a normal human compared to the others.

Wait, why is he accepting all of this so easily?

Jake was not going to be a killer, definitely not. He refused, not wanting to do anything involved with shedding blood of the innocent just to please some weird deity, god, whatever. He would survive, and he would get out of this hellhole.

 _“Oh, **please**. Actually, you know what? Sure. I’ll help you with your surviving and such, but in return, I desire to be well cared for. The Entity doesn’t really give good grub in the Nightmare, I tell you.”_ Wait, so the bird now read his thoughts? Well, if he can talk to it, he guessed reading his thoughts isn’t too farfetched. Understandable.

So, the bird wanted a deal? Looks like Jake lucked out. If it were any other crow, they would probably disagree to the entire idea, or just leave back to the Entity. But this one, it just had a simple and reasonable request. Score for Jake.

 _“I can hear you, you know. So, it’s a deal? Great. We’ll talk the details later. You’ve got the Nurse coming up at your six. The Trapper left, but that doesn’t mean the killers are done testing you. Different ones will come in at different times, and they probably will just ignore the rest. Their target is you. The Hillbilly is next. Watch for the chainsaw. Oh, and my name’s Midnight. Let’s roll.”_ Midnight spoke with an authoritative voice, giving out commands like a seasoned commander on the battlefield. Jake felt a smile come to his face.

He was going to like this crow.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Honestly, I am so tired right now. I finished most of this on the way back from school, and I have to say, it took me a while. This is an ongoing train wreck already, so why not take it to its extreme? Therefore, in celebration of the release of the Huntress, I added a little special character for all y'all.

_“So, how did you end up here, if you don’t mind me asking?”_ Midnight asked, hesitant to ask, as he was afraid of interrupting Jake while he worked on the last generator needed to escape this trial.

With Midnight’s guidance and surveillance, Jake managed to evade the killers with ease, and got another hook while they were at it. Someone finished a generator, due to the loud popping sound they make when they get repaired.

‘Well, as like anyone else did. I was a normal human, and decided to go into the woods one day. I never came back out, and next thing I know, here I am,’ Jake thought, not wanting to speak for fear of alerting the killers he was there. He also didn’t want to tell Midnight everything yet, since he just met the crow. Midnight flew off the tree it was perched on, and landed on top of the generator, just as Jake managed to finish it, powering the doors. Time to make their escape.

Midnight flew up, taking his role as scout and navigation once more. _“Go to the far door. The near one is guarded. You might also want to stay aware of your friends there. The ginger girl might be heading straight for the Nurse. Go around the wall, and stay there. You’ll see her when she goes around the corner.”_

Jake followed the instructions, pressing his back against the wall that was opposite of the generator. He peeked around the wall, and slowly moved to the corner for maximum security.

Before long, Meg entered his field of vision, just like Midnight said. Jake tried to catch Meg’s attention without making any noise, and it ended with him flailing his arms, trying to draw attention to him. It worked.

Meg looked over to Jake, before slowly making her way towards him, a confused expression on her face.

_“What?”_ Meg whispered, looking around to make sure that they were in the clear.

_“The Nurse is at that door, we need to go to the other one,”_ Jake replied, and a look of understanding dawned on Meg’s face. She nodded, before they left the area and went to the other door. Meg didn’t question how Jake knew any of that, which shows the bond of trust the group had with each other.

By the time they got there, both Claudette and Dwight were standing by, waiting to return and rescue if needed. Seeing both Meg and Jake perfectly fine, they let out a sigh of relief, before the quartet escaped into the mist, glad that the trial ended successfully in all aspects.

* * *

Jake felt the presence of Midnight close by, lingering as the mist around them twisted to reveal the fireplace that they had to call home base in the Nightmare. The group sat down by the fireplace, patching up any wounds that they got from the trial. However, it seems they were lucky. The most serious one was Jake’s leg, and it was wrapped up quite easily.

_“Hey, come out to the woods. We’ll talk here,”_ Midnight’s voice echoed into his mind. Jake excused himself, before heading into the woods. The other survivors saw nothing of it, since some of them usually stepped away for a moment, especially Jake. He was more of a lone wolf, but being surrounded by teammates who he trusted was a nice change, albeit in a dangerous situation.

Jake walked away from the campfire, but not too far as to lose sight of the light. Jake knew the risks of getting too far into the mist, as it might result in him being in a whole trial all by himself. He did it once before, and never again.

“So, Midnight, what are we going to talk about?” Jake asked the bird, keeping his voice low as to not let his fellow survivors know about the situation he was in.

_“Well, our deal is a bit rough. So, let’s work out the finer details. If you disagree anywhere, we can talk about it and find a compromise. Alright?”_ Jake nodded, and Midnight chirped.

_“All right. So, let’s start with me. I was supposed to be doing the Entity’s work, serving you as an assistant so that you can be a decent killer. But, you don’t want to be one. And I can’t just go back to the Entity. Therefore, I will help you with your surviving, and in return, you’ll take good care of me, at least better than what the Entity does. Alright?”_ Midnight explained, and Jake sat by a tree, facing the light of the fireplace.

“Well, yeah, and here’s my end of the deal. I don’t want to kill people, and refuse to be a servant of the Entity. Therefore, I don’t like how my senses are changing, and more killers are after me. You seemed like a nice person, bird, creature, whatever you would like to be identified as, and so we formed the deal. You’ll help me with navigation and scouting in trials, and in return, I’ll take care of you, keep the Entity away, and such. Right?” Jake asked and the crow nodded.

_“I’m a guy. Now, I also wanted to talk to you about those sensory changes. Do you know what exactly the Entity gave you?”_ Midnight asked, to which Jake shook his head. The meeting with the Entity felt like a distant dream in his head, even though it happened just very recently.

_“He didn’t give me any explanation as to what they are, so I’m gonna need you to try and tap into them, alright?”_ Midnight asked once more, and Jake nodded.

Jake then closed his eyes and began to concentrate, feeling for something to trigger said powers. He delved into his consciousness, trying to find the spot he needed. Jake didn’t need to do this for long, as he soon felt something about his senses change. He felt the wind blow against his jacket, and every time the jacket made contact with his skin made him shiver. He could hear the crackling of the fireplace, and the cawing of crows in the distance. Everything felt enhanced.

_“Wow, you’re a natural. No wonder the Entity wanted you to be a killer. Now, open your eyes, Jake,”_ Midnight suggested. Jake opened his eyes, and everything was blurry. But soon, everything felt super focused, like he was looking at things through a HD camera.

_“Well, that was unexpected, but cool as hell,”_ Midnight commented, and Jake asked him what was cool.

_“Well, your eyes, of course. They’re glowing yellow. Makes you look like a real killer.”_ Midnight picked up a stray piece of glass on the floor, and Jake was baffled for a second on how it got here, so perfectly timed, just when they needed it.

_“Take a look.”_ Midnight dropped the glass on Jake’s palm and looked at his eyes in the reflection. Midnight was right. They were yellow, piercing through the darkness with an eerie glow. It was definitely abnormal, but Jake had to admit, it was cool as all heck.

_“Yes, we’re all jealous. Now, I doubt my role is just to play navi and scout. So, we should have some sort of bond. Try feeling for that too,”_ Midnight chirped, excited now. Jake chuckled, and closed his eyes once again. He focused on the pull he felt from Midnight, before homing in on it.

He felt the world around him shift somewhat, and suddenly he felt something weird about his body.

“Oh, fuck me. This is the shit!” Jake heard his voice yell. Wait, what? Jake opened his eyes, seeing him right in front of him. But, he’s him? What?

“We switched bodies, Jake!” Jake presumed that Midnight was in his body. That would mean that he’s in Midnight’s body. When he realized that fact, he then noticed the changes around him.

Jake could feel the beak where his mouth would have been, and the area around him felt so big. He had the urge to spread his arms, or, wings, he guessed. Jake opened up his wings, feeling the breeze catch his wings, slightly lifting him up.

_“Woah, how do I fly?!”_ Jake yelled telepathically, as he flapped his wings uselessly. He felt off balanced, with new limbs and his new body shape. Midnight managed to grasp the motions of a human quickly, but Jake was trying to understand how to fly.

“Well, don’t just flap your wings all over. Try to feel for the current that will lift you up, and use that to go up. Push down on that current, and that should shoot you up. When in the air, just use your wings to catch the air, and that will help you glide. When you want to go down, just fold your wings along your body, and dive,” Midnight explained. Jake nodded, before attempting to catch a current to fly above the foliage. It ended in him falling off the branch and landing on the ground.

It took a few tries, but Jake soon was able to lift up into the air, and was able to suspend long enough to appreciate birds of all kinds. But the view of the Nightmare was great.

The foliage spread out, with a slight glow coming from the fireplace. However, that wasn’t the good part.

The sky was bright and clear, with stars twinkling in the distance. It looked like a galaxy, and Jake was shocked at the detail. He never would have believed that such a beautiful sight could exist in the Nightmare. The juxtaposition of it just made him laugh.

_“Yo, you having fun? You should come down now, I think your friends might be getting suspicious. We’ll try to swap bodies once more, and you can head back.”_ Jake dived down, reaching the foliage in just a short while. He had to be honest, being a crow felt amazing. He felt so free, able to travel wherever he wanted to.

Jake tapped into the connection once more, and he soon felt back in his body. He felt around, trying to get used to being back in his body. Once he felt fine, he started walking back towards the fire, feeling his senses dampen once more. His vision returned to normal, just as he got out of the foliage to return to the clearing.

* * *

Everyone glanced at him, and they just continued doing their thing. Dwight seemed to just be sitting there, fiddling with a flashlight.

Dwight was always a calm guy, managing to keep his cool in a trial. However, any form of human interaction he cannot do. He got so nervous when he first talked to him, Claudette and Meg. He kept stuttering, and they couldn’t understand what he was trying to tell them. It ended up being him trying to tell them that he got a generator, but they already knew that. His guidance under tense moments were definitely his strong points, being able to help others while also working himself. That was Dwight’s role: The Leader.

Meg was stretching, getting ready as a trial could begin anytime. Beside her was also a small tied up sachet, which Jake knew was an offering to better their chances.

Meg was fast, definitely. She had a good amount of stamina, and could run long distances despite being injured. Her speed was no joke. She had the ability to outrun a good amount of killers, and her evasion techniques are one of the best Jake has seen before. When she first met the group, it had been when she was running from the Hillbilly, its chainsaw at the ready. She yelled at them to scatter, before speeding past them like a bullet. She yelled once more, this time at the killer, grabbing its attention, before running off again. Her role was easy: The Distraction.

Claudette was organizing her med kit, arranging the bandages and medical scissors, as well as all the other parts that Jake has no idea of.

Claudette was an interesting one. Jake first met her when she unhooked him from a hook, before asking him to follow her to behind one of the walls. She then picked out some plants, and rubbed them on the wound on Jake’s shoulder.

“You’re gonna be fine,” she said, as she began wrapping the wound with gauze. Jake felt instantly relieved at her words, feeling the pain slowly fade away. He regained feeling in his arm soon enough, and he silently thanked Claudette, before they separated once more.

When the end of the trial came, Claudette was seen at the door, ready to head back to save any of them if they got caught. She was always so ready to put herself in danger, but she forgets that she is important to. After all, she was The Healer of the group.

Nea was back, with no wounds whatsoever. She still had the key that she found, which opened the hatch. It was beginning to show signs of cracks, though.

Nea was an interesting addition to the group. She had the street smarts that set her apart from every other survivor. She knew how to survive, how to use things sparingly, and how to be quiet. Mashtyx didn’t live to be caught, after all. She could move quickly, as well as keep her tracks hidden. Jumping off high places, being sneaky, it all came in the package. She had experience with running and surviving, that when she came, everyone was glad to have her as part of the squad. Her addition changed the entire match. She was, and is, The perfect Survivor.

Beside her was Laurie, who had a piece of wood grasped tightly in her hands. She also had a bouquet of flowers beside her.

Laurie was unique in her own way. When she came in, she knew what she was doing. She was able to identify and understand how all of the killers’ powers work. She knew to avoid line of sight with The Shape, or Michael as she calls him, instantly. The moment she saw the figure, she moved quickly and silently, with no hesitation in her footsteps. Her experience sets her apart. She knew the thought process of a killer, and knew how to exploit it to her advantage. Laurie was vicious, knowing how to strike when the killer has her in their grasp. She knew how to live when everyone else was gone. In a way, she could be seen as The Adept in their group.

Ace sat opposite from them. He had his grin on as always, with a deck of cards under his sleeve. He looked like he was trying to practice some sort of magic trick. That was nice. It really helped when everyone was so tense, to have something that would help them unwind.

Jake didn’t like Ace when he first appeared from the mist. He thought that he would just be some cocky bastard that would just get himself killed. It also didn’t help that he knew who Ace was.

He met Ace before, when he was but a small child. It was a dinner night his father hosted, and he was forced to be the young master, sitting there and acting prim and proper. He remembered when Ace got near Jake, and his breath reeked of alcohol. It wasn’t helping that he met him while he was playing a game of poker, and somehow managing to lose almost every game.

But Ace was totally different in the Nightmare. He still had that unbreakable spirit to him, but he had that glint of determination in his eyes. Like he wouldn’t be happy with losing this one. That he would not lose this gamble, at any cost. And in the Nightmare, that is essential. To always smile while everything went to ruin. To be sure that you’ll never give up to the deity they will fight against. His luck twisted the trial in their favor, and therefore his role solidified after a few trials: The Ace, which is funny.

And then there was him. Jake Park. The man who just knew his way around a toolbox. Honestly, he felt out of place, just weak and useless. The others had something that they could do that no one else could. They all had skills that would be hard to run across in the real world. But Jake was just your ordinary man. The only somewhat useful skill he had was keeping calm under pressure. His high composure also helped with dealing with generators.

But anyone could have done what he did.

* * *

Jake grabbed his toolbox, and cracked it open. The tools he had were all over the place. He sighed, before putting all the correct tools in the right compartment. The extra gears on top, with wires and wrenches on the next level, followed by the other miscellaneous tools on the bottom. He could feel Midnight’s gaze on him, from the foliage near him.

“Guys,” Nea’s voice rang out. Jake turned his head up, just in time to see the fog beginning to roll in. Since there were only 4 survivors that could enter a trial at once, one of them must stay at the fire, waiting for the others. Usually, the fog would just surround the 4 chosen ones, but this time the fog just came in from all directions.

“Wait, what’s happening? All of us are going in?” Ace said, baffled. They didn’t have time to respond, though, as soon the fog began to surround their visions.

Midnight flew towards Jake and perched on his shoulder. By the time it went down, they were no longer at the clearing.

Jake looked around, trying to identify the terrain. It was a new place. It was some sort of facility, with lights flickering on and off. What was this place? The sign beside Jake read ‘Léry’s Memorial Institute: Treatment Theatre’. Jake wandered in slowly, cautious of his surroundings. It was a new map, and therefore he didn’t know what to expect. Midnight flew up, before perching himself up towards the ceiling, keeping an eye out for potential killers. It was a closed area, so Midnight couldn’t truly shine.

A scream echoed in Jake’s ear. That was Laurie. She was down already? No way, right? She was the one who was always cautious and aware of everything around her. So, there could be no chance she was already caught. Jake tried to close in on the shout, to help Laurie up if he could.

_“Jake, no!”_ Midnight yelled, but it was too late. Jake’s foot stepped on the floor, and a current pulsed around him. Electricity raced through his body, all heading for his brain. His brain felt the shock, and he screamed. The excruciating pain was all he could feel for a moment, his vision fading to a white before refocusing on the world around him. He needed to move, but it was too late.

He felt another, more concentrated shock run up his spine, causing his head to go dizzy once more. He screamed, falling to his knees, as his hands grasped his head. Weird images begin popping up, his heartbeat was irregular, and he felt the pressure of someone watching always on him. He heard a deep laugh emanate from behind him, and he turned around.

Behind him was what a kid would see as their worst nightmare. There stood a man, in a lab coat, with the sleeves torn off. It had a contraption on its face, which seemed to be forcing its eyes wide open, as well as its mouth. Its left hand was glowing blue, and it had a dangerous-looking stick on its right. It swung the stick, and Jake was barely able to evade. Jake tried to escape, but images of this new killer kept popping up, causing him to scream whenever he just seemingly popped up out of nowhere. Jake was terrified.

_“Jake, you need to snap out of it!”_ Midnight yelled, and Jake’s mind managed to focus on something: Midnight’s voice. With that, he calmed himself, slowing down and taking a breather. He felt the images and other effects slowly go away, and soon, everything was back to normal.

What was this new killer?


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I am so dead. I finished this in school, when I should really be paying attention. Ah well, screw it. Honestly, this chapter feels a bit off to me, but hey, I'm still gonna post it. Thanks for all the support so far, so here. Have another chapter. I need to sleep.

_“Jake, take over. You need to see this,”_ Midnight said in Jake’s mind. Jake obeyed, focusing on the bond he felt once more, as the world around him warped. It still felt strange, but Jake was definitely liking being a bird.

When he opened his eyes, he tried to make no noise. The killer was chasing Meg, it shocking her, causing her to hallucinate. She made irregular patterns when she ran, and her pupils were dilated. Soon, it will be hard to tell the actual scream of someone getting hit to the sound of the killer’s shocks.

_“This is rough,”_ Jake said to Midnight. He flew around, trying to locate where Midnight was. He was working on a generator, trying to fix the gears in the right places. Midnight was certainly doing well, seeing as it was technically his first time doing it. However, he was able to read Jake’s mind, so this wouldn’t be far off. It was the same every time, so it should be easy to pick up.

_“You keep working, I’ll try to locate the other killer. There probably will be two, seeing the huge group the Entity dragged in. Plus, one’s supposed to be after me, no? You’re doing great, Midnight. I’m going to also go grab a snack for your body, if I can find anything edible.”_ Jake heard Midnight growl before he flew away.

Jake flew around the map, going through the different rooms and hallways, and trying to locate all the players on the map. He found Meg, Ace, and Laurie, but he couldn’t find the others. Did they get moved to another map? Or were they somewhere else? Jake assumed that they were sent to another trial, separate from this one. It was the most probable option.

Jake was flying around when he heard the sound of heavier footsteps approaching. Jake landed, and he saw the supposed killer test that he had to overcome this trial. It was the Shape, or Michael Myers. Jake flew off when he got near him, and went back to the ceiling. In the distance, he heard the popping of a generator, which he could only assume was done by Midnight.

_“The second killer is Michael. Keep away from his line of sight and he should be easy to overcome. Once he reaches Level Three of his Evil Within ability, keep away from him. He gains more force, able to down you in one hit. It won’t last long, though. If he picks you up, remember to strike like Laurie taught.”_ Jake relayed, and he felt Midnight nod. He moved alongside his body, keeping an eye out for Michael as well as that new killer.

He was not going to die tonight.

* * *

 

Midnight was liking the thrills of being a survivor. The insane heartbeat, the adrenaline rushing through his veins, everything just felt so lively. After who knows how long of being trapped in the Nightmare, with nothing exciting but the certain trials he got to witness sometimes, this felt amazing. Midnight smiled, as he crouched to avoid Michael’s eye.

_“The new guy’s coming up on your left. Michael’s on your right. Keep walking straight, and make sure to stay low. If Michael sees you, that’s it. Be wary of the shock radius of the new guy. That hurts like a bitch.”_ Jake’s voice rang loud and clear in Midnight’s ears. He followed the instructions, moving slow, but fast enough to be able to evade both killers. He passed by a window, and was able to catch a glimpse of the back of the Shape. He quickly ducked, and kept his breath silent.

Midnight closed his eyes, trying to focus on the images he has seen of everyone in the field. All the killers, all the survivors, Jake in his body, every single detail he could imagine. When he opened his eyes, everything turned to a shade of red.

Midnight’s eyes focused, as everything became clear to him. He could feel the aura of everyone around him. He could see the killers’ auras, as well as the auras of his allies. They were all far away, working on generators. That was good.

_“Hey, that’s not bad. I can see the auras too. Is that your ability or something?”_ Jake asked, and Midnight shrugged.

“Guess we’ll find out…” Midnight muttered softly, keeping quiet.

_“Also, I didn’t notice this before, but your eyes are red. Just like your eyes in your body. Well, aren’t they technically my eyes? This is confusing. At any rate, they’re red.”_ Jake pointed out, and Midnight nodded, slowly moving forward. Soon, he was moving far away from the killers, after making sure to put some distance between them.

Before long, his vision began returning to normal, the auras fading out. Midnight smirked, before turning the corner and finding Meg on a generator. He nodded to her, before beginning to work on the generator, on the opposite side of her. The popping of two generators echoed through the building. Looks like Laurie and Ace finished up.

“Hey, you all right?” Midnight whispered, and Meg nodded. She then began walking away, so Midnight finished up and followed her. Midnight walked slowly, while Meg moved faster. Midnight tried to focus on his aura reading skills once more, to identify and pinpoint where the killers are. He still had much to learn about this place, so he had to be careful. After all, no one wanted to end up in the basement.

His eyes glowed, and everything was in the red tint as before. The guy with the electricity was towards Ace, it seems, and Meg was going to walk straight into Michael’s line of sight. Midnight’s eyes widened, as he quickly ran forward and held onto Meg just right before she turned the corner.

_“Your eyes, Midnight!”_ Jake yelled too late. Meg stifled a gasp as she saw the red glow to Midnight’s, or who she thought to be Jake’s, eyes.

Midnight sighed softly, before asking her to follow him. Meg, having no other choice, followed Midnight as he slowly moved away, while keeping an eye on the auras of Michael and the new killer.

Michael was walking the opposite direction, his footsteps slowed. This meant he was possibly stalking someone, or just keeping his view open for anyone who walks into his site. Laurie and Ace seem to be on the far side, so it was definitely the latter.

The new killer was still terrifying. They had no idea of his true capabilities, but Midnight thinks that his main ability would be the shocks he can let out. It seemed to cause people to hallucinate, making you go mad. How could you counter that?

_“Jake, what was that?!”_ Meg whisper-yelled.

_“You wanna switch?”_ Jake suggested, but Midnight refused. He wanted to test this new killer, and switching back and forth is pointless and wasting time.

_“Look, I’ll explain later, but for now, let’s just get out of here.”_ Right as he said that, Ace finished the last generator they needed. Midnight led Meg towards the door.

The door was outside the building, where Jake had started. Jake flew over, keeping close, but not close enough that Meg would get suspicious. He landed onto one of the mossy rocks, while he watched as Meg pulled down the lever to open the door.

Midnight’s aura vision died down slowly, just when he needed it the most. He cursed, before taking a deep breath and trying to activate it once more. His eyes were tired and hurting, but he would have to do this again, pushing his limits, if he wanted to escape alive. That new killer would kill them all if that electricity was something to go off of.

“Keep opening, I’ll watch our six,” Midnight said, eyes once again focused on the auras of everyone. The killers were at the other exit, but they seem to be making their way here. Ace and Laurie were approaching the other door, but they seem to notice the other killers there. They were moving slowly, keeping their head down and being cautious of every step.

Michael was supposed to be going only after him, but that seemed to be going out the window. He moved fast, turning at every small suspicious detail, and prepared to strike at any moment. Ace and Laurie would be in trouble if this went on.

Midnight charged back in once Meg opened the door, just as a scream echoed through the building. Looks like someone got shocked by that new guy. Jake flew towards the sound, landing onto one of the hospital beds lying around, or on the rocks.

_“Midnight, swap. Pushing the aura vision isn’t going to work. We don’t know much about it, so we don’t know what kind of side effects overusing it will have,”_ Jake’s voice echoed. Midnight cursed, before reluctantly getting pulled back into his crow body. Jake had a point, but it just felt so exciting, being able to run, hide, and do all the tasks that he usually would not be able to.

Jake took control once again, and his head began spinning. Perhaps it was due to the aura vision, but his vision felt impaired, and everything was moving too quickly. Jake stopped to lean against a wall, trying to get his sense of balance to return to him.

_“Sorry, I think I overdid it,”_ Midnight said, sadness in his tone.

“It’s fine…” Jake muttered, knowing that Midnight didn’t do it on purpose. He would never. Jake knew he technically just met the bird a trial ago, but he felt like he knew him his entire life. Midnight knew him just as well, knowing every single detail in his head.

Jake noticed the electricity pulsing through the ground this time, able to hear the crackling and feel his skin crawl. He backed up, allowing the circle of electricity to go past him, while he held his breath. This new killer was awfully good at what he does, and they needed to come up with a counter to him as soon as possible.

This was usually Meg’s job, Jake sighed to himself, as he stood out into the open. With his hands waving crazily, he yelled, “Hey, asshole!”

That certainly worked. Too well.

Both the new killer, as well as Michael, who just turned the corner, turned to face Jake. It wasn’t long before they started giving chase, running straight at him. Jake leaped through windows, ducked under swipes, avoided electric shocks, and pulled down pallets.

He did well, but outrunning two killers was borderline impossible.

Soon, Michael managed to get a slash on Jake’s back, causing him to groan in pain, and he ran for the nearest exit.

_“Everyone’s gone, the hatch is open! Take a right and the second left, and it should be right there!”_ Midnight yelled. He was flying ahead of Jake, ready to dive into the hatch at a moment’s notice. Jake ran for his life, jumping left and right to avoid the baton the new killer had, as well as Michael’s knife. He pulled down a pallet, just in time to stun Michael who was chasing him with fervor.

He heard the sound of Michael destroying the pallet, and took the chance to run to the hatch.

Too late.

The new killer was standing by the hatch, his face somehow contorted to a grin, even with the contraption on his face. Jake stopped, not noticing how close Michael was behind him, ready to strike the final blow.

_“Jake, left! We’ll head for the door, and that’ll prompt him to move. Go a big circle, and dash for the hatch once it’s clear!”_ Midnight commanded. Jake ran to the left, dodging Michael’s knife, and ran towards the door Ace and Laurie escaped from. Jake was certainly exhausted, but he wasn’t giving up.

Not now.

Jake vaulted over another window, ran around Michael, and vaulted once more before slowing his steps. He might have lost them, but they’ll definitely be close to the exits.

_“Hatch is clear. Right up front, and vault over the window.”_ Midnight’s commands gave a sign of hope for Jake. He moved slowly, not wanting the killers to pinpoint his location.

Jake vaulted over the window, but right as he jumped, he felt a pain in his back. Jake screamed, before falling onto the ground. He tried to crawl to the hatch, but it was just out of his reach before the new killer picked him up, the electricity on him causing Jake to yell once more.

Jake began struggling, before he remembered Laurie’s advice.

* * *

 

_“Any sharp object will do. They don’t expect you to strike back, which is why you should do it,” Laurie said, before picking up a piece of wood that fell from the log they were sitting on. She then showed where to strike for max damage, and how to get up and run after the killers faltered._

_“I think everyone should learn this skill. After all, it could mean life and death, out here in these woods,” Laurie said with a smile. Jake returned it, before practicing it with Laurie._

_“So, stab below the shoulder blade, but close enough to hit the spinal cord? And then while they are stunned, push off them, and run like hell?” Jake asked, and Laurie nodded. Jake picked up a piece of wood, before stabbing it deeply into the log._

_“Yeah, just like that. You gotta go deep, or else they’ll just get annoyed. Hit deep enough that they’ll falter.” Laurie instructed. She pulled out the piece of wood, before piercing it through the wood once more, but this time it went deeper._

_“Keep practicing, and you should get the hang of it.” She said, as she got up and went over to Nea. Jake smiled. It was nice seeing everyone sharing their expertise, and possibly changing the outcomes of these trials._

* * *

 

Jake’s hands reached out, trying to grasp at anything. He grabbed the wall, and managed to pull out a piece of loose concrete along with him. With the sharp tip, he struck.

It pierced through the killer’s outfit, and went deep enough to cause some damage. The killer growled, as his grip began to loosen. At the smallest sign of escape, Jake pushed himself off, and ran for the hatch. It was open, and Jake sprinted, before it turned into a dive. Midnight was on the edge of the opening, and flew down when Jake jumped. Right as Jake’s body made it through, the door shut, guaranteeing the escape of the duo.

They made it out, alive.

Jake followed the pathway given to him by the hatch, as it led him back out into the woods. Midnight flew out before him, into the night sky, but Jake knew he’ll be close, ready to enter in a moment’s notice.

Jake returned to see everyone fine, some with injuries, but it seemed like no one was sacrificed. There was a new face among the group, a small girl.

She looked to be from Asian descent, and she had on what seems like a jersey of some sort. She had a tense expression on her face, and Claudette was beside her, trying to help her with her wounds.

Laurie was the first one to notice him return. She looked up, and smiled when she saw him. Jake returned the smile, before he joined the group. Meg seemed relieved that he made it back, Claudette was just glad everyone was fine. Dwight looked to be lost in his own world, and Nea was fiddling with something in her hands. Ace was flipping through a deck, and the new girl looked to be drumming her fingers on her leg.

“Since everyone’s back, I presume, I’ll introduce myself. My name is Feng Min, and I’m the new survivor or whatever’s happening here. Just call me Min, that’s what everyone calls me. I got a brief introduction to everything, and was plopped into a trial, or whatever you call it.” She kept it short and precise, which Jake could respect. He wasn’t the wordiest of people, so he could understand the feeling.

“Well, it’s great to have you in the squad, Feng Min, is what I’d like to say, but there are no winners in this. You saw what happens here, and it’s not exactly good. But, more people means higher chances of living. So, welcome to the team,” Dwight said, taking the representative role.

“I’m Claudette, the ginger girl’s Meg, the guy with glasses is Dwight, Jake’s the one with the green jacket. Nea’s the one with the beanie, Laurie is the blonde girl, and the older guy is Ace.” Claudette pointed to everyone as she introduced them, and everyone gave a wave when their name was said.

“Well, I hope that I can do something to help you guys out. I’m gonna need all the help I can get,” Feng Min said, as she bowed towards everyone. But when she got up, the fog was rolling in. Time for another trial already?

The Entity was being rough today. Or has it been a day?


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The backstories for the characters aren't really developed, so I did my own little spin to it. I hope I managed to get it right, because I'm not really good with sad scenes, I believe. People say I'm good at it, but I think I'm terrible, and this isn't me being modest. I honestly think I'm trash at it. But I'll let you guys decide.

The fog surrounded Feng Min, Jake, Dwight, and Claudette. Meg looked like she wanted to say something, but the group was gone before she could ask anything.

Here we go again.

* * *

 

They were at a map that at least Jake was somewhat familiar to. The Backwater Swamp. Jake let Midnight fly around, get used to the map, as he wandered around for a generator. He made sure to stay away from The Pale Rose, as to not alert the killer with the millions of crows on the ship.

Jake found a generator and got working. Midnight was watching, keeping an eye out for Jake, so he could out his full attention to the generator, which allowed him to get more work done faster.

_“Someone’s coming,”_ Midnight warned, and Jake slowly moved away from the generator. He kept close, hoping to possibly spot the killer.

It turns out it was nothing.

It was Feng Min, who looked unharmed. She moved to the generator, before pulling around and fixing it. Jake slowly moved back towards it, smiling when Feng Min turned to look at him. She returned, before getting back to work.

“Hey, you know how to this already, yeah?” Jake asked, and she nodded.

“I’ve made my own computer before, and it’s similar. Just connect the power source to the generator, and you’ve got it going,” Feng Min said, a smirk on her face.

_“She’s good. She used the excess cogs to reroute the system. If anything goes wrong, no sounds will come out, since the backup route will just fail, not resulting in an explosion. That’s good, in this scenario,”_ Midnight pointed out. Jake tried to do what Feng Min was doing, following the instructions Midnight gave.

“I know it’s probably a terrible time, but I want to get to know you more, is that alright?” Jake said, trying to start a conversation, but also keeping it quiet. No reason for having the killer hear them.

“Sure, but you go first. My past isn’t exactly nice, in the sense of the word. So, if you don’t mind, I’ll hear yours first.” Feng Min didn’t miss a beat with that reply, still keeping quiet so that only they can hear each other over the rumbling of the generator.

“Well, my past isn’t squeaky clean, either. I grew up with a rich family, but the pressure was definitely there. My dad was a head of a company called Park Tech Inc.,” Jake started, when Feng Min interjected.

“Park Tech? Aren’t they the biggest developers out there for anything tech, from PCs to gaming computers, and even moving to fridges and air conditioners?” Feng Min asked, and Jake nodded.

“Yeah, he does a lot. Therefore, he expected me to be the heir of the company. Even though my brother was perfectly capable of taking over, my father felt that my brother was just a test, and I would be the final product. Creating solid agreements, seal every deal up to a tee. No mistakes, rule with an iron fist. The perfect noble.” Jake felt a grimace coming at the last word. He hated every part of it.

“So, I was forced to be perfectly educated. Have high levels of knowledge, go to a prestigious university and college, have my future set in front of me. Everything was perfect, and I needed to just follow the yellow brick road to success and fame.” Jake felt his anger pool within him by just talking about his father.

“The only reason I tolerated all of it was for my mom. She was a perfect mother, caring, understanding, and didn’t pressure her children to become the grand CEO. She didn’t see us as Park Tech heirs, but rather as her children. Her family. People that she would protect with all her life. She was the silver lining in the awful past that I had.” Jake said, as he almost messed up. However, the backup system worked, and managed to cover up the possible explosion.

“It was around university when I cracked. The pressure built up, and I dropped out of school. I went out to live close to the woods, instead of being close to civilization. Everywhere I went, it was all just Park Tech. So, I went to where no one would reach me. I would occasionally go out to buy food and such, but other than that, there was close to none human contact.” Jake snapped the panel into place, and reinstalled the backup system once more before continuing.

“My mom would visit me at times, just to know that I was doing fine. I haven’t died yet, haven’t starved, and it was nice just to have a conversation with her. We chatted about normal things, and kept the topic away from my dad and what he was doing at the time. It was a time I treasured, and the only thing I regret when I ended up here. I was given a short explanation, and plopped right in. Just like you. However, experience plays a part here, and being one of the longest here has definitely trained my senses.” Jake ended his story, once again thinking about the fun conversations he had with his mother.

* * *

 

_“Jake, what do you want to be when you do decide?” His mother’s voice was gentle, caring. The total opposite of the gruff and commanding tone of his father._

_“Well, I have no idea. Maybe start a pet shop or something? I am said to be an animal charmer,” Jake said with a chuckle. His mother giggled as well, and the angelic sound just brought a smile to Jake’s face._

_“Well, no matter what you want to do, I’ll support you all the way. Your father might have plans for you, but I’ll try to do my best. You deserve freedom, and I’ll be there with you the whole way,” her voice said gently._

_“Thanks, Mom. I think I might start something small, like a small shop or a café. Nothing too big, no need for expanding, just a small cozy place for myself, and I can get something to live off of,” Jake said, as his imagination ran wild. It would be a small shop, and he would have the greatest time, talking to friends, hanging out, an overall good time. The things he couldn’t get to do before._

_“If you need anything, just know that I am here. I won’t interfere with what plans you have, because that’s all up to you. You get to make your decisions.” Jake smiled at his mother, before enveloping her in a hug. She truly was the shining light in his eyes, the person he admired the most._

_“I love you, Mom,” Jake said, eyes coming close to tears. His mother giggled, before returning the hug._

_“I love you too, my strong, little bodyguard.”_

* * *

 

Jake smiled sadly at the final memory he had of his mother, tears gathering by his eyes. Her final words to him before he entered this world. He never got to do so many things with her, to spend so much more time with her, before death finally take her into its grasp. What a weird way fate has played out for him.

“Wow, that sounds terrible. I thought my story was sad, but I was wrong. I’m sorry if you didn’t want to think about it,” Feng Min apologized. Jake shook his head, before reassuring her that it was alright. He was over it.

“Well, now it’s my time to fulfill my deal. I was born to a regular Asian family. They wanted me to do well in school, and if I did, I had my freedom. However, one day, I discovered the Internet.” Feng Min spoke with a glint in her eyes, as she mentioned the Internet.

“I got caught up in the computer world. Games, social media, so many ways to talk to people. Minutes became hours, hours became days, and I was so glued to the computer. That was when my parents drew the line, forcing me to get off and focus on my studies.” Feng Min said, as the last piston on the generator began pumping.

“I was a dumb teenager then, and had a tantrum. I ran from home in a rage, and went to live in many cyber cafés, using the computers there to stream, chat, game, and so many others. Before long, I was well known all around the world, known as the ‘Shining Lion’.” Feng Min spoke with such pride, Jake couldn’t help but stifle a laugh.

“I was recruited to play with an e-sports team, and we won. We won a lot, that I was afraid of losing. I stayed up late, playing games to get better. I didn’t want to disappoint, I didn’t want to let everyone down. I was scared that everyone would leave, that they would hate me if I lost,” Feng Min’s tone fell, and Jake had to strain to even hear her.

“Before long, my performance fell. I began losing, and people started seeing me as nothing much. My team slowly distanced themselves from me, and I was scared, scared that my worst nightmare was coming true. I ran, left, and wandered the streets, the only place I could get a decent rest with a nice place to sleep was the forest. When I went in and slept, I woke up here,” Feng Min gestured to the scenery around here.

“I met Claudette first, and she was just as shocked as me to see someone else here. She then told me the basics, and I managed from there. We got to the campfire, and you know the rest.” Feng Min said, turning back to the generator.

The generator popped, and Jake heard another one go off in the distance. They were getting work done. So far, still no sign of the killer yet. That eliminated the Nurse, the Trapper, the Hillbilly, and the Wraith. It can’t be the new killer, either, seeing as no one was screaming yet. That left the Shape, or the Hag. Jake had to be wary of Phantasm Traps, and not trigger them.

Jake gave a very basic rundown of all the killers, as they moved slowly while searching for generators to work on. Feng Min managed to absorb all the information easily, not flinching at all when Jake described all their powers, including the newest killer.

_“Jake, heads up. Hag’s heading your way. Move to the left, and hide under the pier. Also, Wraith’s your test today. It seems it just wants to test if you can sense it. It has no interest in uncloaking.”_ Midnight’s voice was always a nice thing to have around. Jake was happy that the killers were identified. At least with this, he knew what to do.

Jake gestured for Feng Min to follow him, and they reached another generator. They began working on it once more, gathering extra parts and setting up the backup system. Why hasn’t anyone in their group thought of this before?

“So, we’re kinda similar, aren’t we?” Feng Min asked, and Jake couldn’t help but agree. Their stories were far different, but there definitely was a link between their stories. Something that brought them together.

“In a way, yeah,” Jake said, nodding.

“That’s a positive, I guess, in this Nightmare. At least we can get to know each other better,” Feng Min said, and Jake smiled at her over the generator.

_“Jake, move! She’s coming, get Min and run forward. There should be a hex totem there. Disable that, and her powers are weakened. Don’t disable the ones that aren’t lit, though, that’s just a waste of your time,”_ Midnight said, and Jake got up. He grabbed Feng Min, who looked confused, and they left the generator. Just in time, as once they left, the Hag entered the clearing.

_“How did you know she was coming?”_ Feng Min whispered, and Jake smirked. He didn’t want to tell the group about Midnight, not yet.

_“Just call it intuition for now,”_ Jake said vaguely, and Feng Min seemed to respect his privacy. After all, she had secrets of her own, too.

They seemed to into their conversation, they didn’t notice the Phantasm Trap beside the hex totem they were heading for. Jake triggered the trap, and the image of the Hag appeared.

“Shit, run!” Jake yelled, as they split into different directions. It seems the killers were all aiming for Jake, seeing as the Hag zeroed in on him instantly. Luckily for him, the Hag wasn’t a very fast killer, and primarily relied on her ability to warp to Phantasm Traps.

Jake was able to lose her with vaults and pallets, but he had lost Feng Min in the process. He cursed himself for being careless, too caught up with the conversation to notice the trap on the floor.

_“You knew there would be a trap there, didn’t you,”_ Midnight said gently, and Jake nodded. He had a gut feeling, that the Hag wouldn’t leave herself unprotected like that. Yet, he walked into it like a moron.

_“No time to beat yourself up. There are generators waiting to be done. I’m going to go around to check on everyone else. Be careful.”_ Midnight flew off the tree he was on, and went towards the boat. Jake was all alone now.

This was a first in a while.

Jake wandered slowly, keeping his heightened senses open for either the growling of the Wraith, the ripples he left, or the sounds of the Hag. He moved slowly, and began working on a hook.

He tweaked on the chains that kept the hook up there. Jake pulled on the chains, before trying to loosen them, which would allow the hook to fall, rendering it useless.

While Jake was in his world, a ripple slowly moved towards him, approaching from his left.

Jake felt something to his left shift, and Jake was instantly on guard. He turned quickly, before he noticed the ripples near the trees. He was then reminded of Midnight’s words, that the Wraith wasn’t there to hunt, but to test.

“I know you’re there,” Jake said, no fear in his words. If they weren’t coming to kill him, then he had no reason to be afraid of them.

The Wraith struck his bell, and he slowly appeared into reality, all seven feet of him. How was he so tall? Jake began noticing the small details that he never thought of before.

The Wraith just simply stood there, watching, and Jake didn’t back down. He won’t, ever. No more backing down since the incident with his father.

“What?” Jake asked, looking the Wraith right in the eye. The Wraith growled, before he rang his bell, disappearing into ripples once more. Jake watched as they left, and he focused on the hook again. It seems he passed the Wraith’s test.

_“You warded him off nicely. He’s probably gone, since he knows you can sense him. I think no one else would be coming anytime soon, so it should be as usual for now. Smooth riding, partner.”_ Jake smiled and looked up, seeing the crow fly around him before landing on his shoulder.

Jake broke down the hook, before looking around for the generator he needed. Another popping sound, and they were down to one. It didn’t take long for a last popping sound to resonate, leaving the doors open and for everyone to escape.

Another survived. He was on a roll. He probably just jinxed himself.

* * *

 

_“Hey, how was he?”_

_“His senses are definitely improving. It won’t be long, now. It seems the guide has been doing his job.”_

_“Why did it come down to this? Did we not hold up our weight?”_

_“No, since he brought in Herman. It seems he just wanted more toys, more servants for his entertainment.”_

_“Can’t we just delay it all somehow?”_

_“No, it seems. It’s sad, but his word is law in this world.”_

_“Hey, why don’t we fight back? He’s doing the same, right?”_

_“Trust me, Lisa, we tried. Don’t you see what happened to Evan? That was our attempt.”_

_“Damn it. I just wish we could do something, just to make it easier on him, so the transition won’t break him.”_

_“I wish we could, Sally, but it doesn’t seem possible. With all these new additions he’s adding to these sick games, he’s keeping us closely monitored. I barely got off today.”_

_“Urgh, fuck. I feel so useless. I just want to do something, Philip.”_

_“Don’t we all. Let’s just hope he won’t turn out like Myers there, lusting blood every single second.”_

_“Let’s hope, then. That’s all we can do.”_


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here we go. More emotional scenes. Again, I'll try my best. No guarantees I'll do something good. I am trying to justify killing someone, kind of. Spoilers.

“So, are you going to explain what happened back in that new place?” Meg asked, as Jake settled down beside her. No one was around, gone on a trial. It grabbed six people this time, meaning that they would be split to groups of three. That has happened before, and it gave some privacy to the others.

“Well, it’s a bit complicated. You remember when I got sacrificed that trial, right?” Meg nodded, and Jake sighed. How was he getting out of this without spilling?

“Um, I didn’t just wake up immediately after I was sacrificed. I was brought to an empty space, and I had a conversation with the Entity.” At the name, Meg perked up. What did the insane deity that brought them here want with Jake?

“He said something that I couldn’t remember, and before I know it, I was awake, with these weird powers. I could look through walls, see the killer as well as all of you, and pinpoint where all you are at every moment. But when I do it, my eyes go red, like you saw.” Jake was nervous at how Meg would react. Would she be afraid of him? Would she be envious? Would she hate him?

“Oh, wow. That’s cool, and really useful.” Wait, what? Jake snapped his head up to look at Meg, and she looked at him with a glint in her eyes. She had a big grin on her face, and she looked excited.

“You don’t think that’s weird?” Jake asked.

“Well, yeah, but this world is weird enough that everything feels normal. Let’s just go with ‘special’.” Jake was happy that Meg accepted him that easily, but he was still hesitant about the others. Also, how would he explain Midnight? The bird that was here to help him with killing, but betrayed his master for good caring?

_“Yes, obviously.”_ Midnight was particularly sassy today. Jake chose to ignore that statement. He thinks it might have been because of him almost hitting the crow earlier with a hook, and the gear of a generator. Twice. Don’t ask how.

“Well, thanks for that. Don’t tell everyone else, though. I think it’s best that it remains a secret for now,” Jake suggested, and Meg nodded. He thanked whatever god was out there that Meg was so understanding.

_“People are coming. Shut up, why don’t you?”_ Jake had to apologize to Midnight later. He has had him in this mood once, and it ended with no navigation in a trial. Jake made it out, but it was harder. He was beginning to rely on Midnight a lot, as his eyes and ears in a trial.

It seems Claudette, Ace, and Feng Min were back. That left Nea, Laurie, and Dwight. Jake was getting closer to Feng Min, seeing as he was the first one she shared her past with.

She taught him how to set up the backup system properly, as well as how sprinting a short while after vaulting worked wonders on losing killers. In return, he taught her how to sabotage hooks and traps, and the different ways to avoid the different killers, as well as how to identify them. She has been with them for a while, but she was still relatively new compared to the others.

_“Hey, come out here.”_ Midnight’s tone was off. Something was up. Jake got up, before stepping out into the woods. He walked far from the campfire, and Midnight came out, landing on his shoulder.

_“I’m not going to be there for the next trial.”_ Jake was taken aback. Was it something he said?

_“No, it’s not for that, though I’m still not satisfied. How did a **gear** , of all things, almost hit me, when I was on a tree!? At any rate, not that. The Entity wants a progress report. I have to report, or I’m dead. It seems he’s tolerating me helping you, since it develops your abilities, or something like that. I wasn’t really listening,”_ Midnight explained.

“Well, alright, I guess. There’s nothing I can do, right?” Jake asked, and Midnight shook his head. Jake waved a goodbye to the bird, as the fog pulled in. Looks like he still had to do this one solo.

* * *

 

He was in the new place again. Léry’s Memorial Institute. Jake sighed. He still didn’t know this place a hundred percent, and having Midnight here would definitely have helped his chances. Let’s just hope it isn’t that new killer, which Midnight told him was called the Doctor.

Jake knew that he himself would be rough, with two killers after him. He heightened his senses, eyes glowing yellow, before he moved in to work on a generator. However, heightening senses also came with a negative.

Things get too loud.

Before long, Jake felt the noise of the pistons pumping in his head, and it was so loud. He just wanted to stop working on it, if it meant that he wouldn’t have to listen to it beat so much.

He was so distracted that he didn’t notice an electric circle getting closer, slowly and slowly, before it was too late. Right as Jake finished, the popping sound resonating through the air, so did another sound.

The sound of Jake’s scream.

Jake felt his mind pulse with the electricity, his brain going wild. His nerves were overcharged, and everything went crazy. He tried to move, but his body was lagging. His motions felt like it was fighting against a black hole, and his vision was slowly turning into white.

Jake forced his body to move, to _do something_ , to get out. While he was frozen, the Doctor approached him. With his stick, he swung, hitting and launching Jake against the generator.

However, with the hit, Jake managed to regain body control. His feet began to move, and he ran, trying to get away from the electric zone of the Doctor. Once he got out, it would be much easier for him to figure out what to do.

The hard thing was that the Doctor also could move.

The Doctor gave chase, the electric zone around him moving as well. Luckily, it seems the electric zone was weakened, since Jake was able to stay in it without the shocks going to his brain immediately.

Jake leaped over the wall, running past the hospital beds and TVs scattered throughout the building. Weird groans and noises emanated from somewhere, and everything felt like a drug trip. Except it’s not.

Soon, he lost the Doctor, using tips that Feng Min and Meg taught him about, when running from a killer. He silently thanked them in his mind, and began moving. Staying still for a long time would cause the crows around him to start cawing, as a way for the killer to find him.

He identified the Doctor, but there was one more. Who will it be?

The idea did feel a bit exciting to Jake. It was like gambling in a casino. If he were lucky, he’ll get someone easy to escape from. If he wasn’t, he’ll have someone like the Trapper or Michael again. The ones that he needs to keep aware for, to pinpoint where everything is.

Back to work, Jake thought. He heightened his senses once again, but he kept everything aware. No longer focused on just the pounding of the pistons.

* * *

 

Pops resonated in the Treatment Theatre, and soon the doors were open, everyone ready to escape. Jake was confused. He has found no trace of this second killer the entire trial, only the Doctor.

His curiosity tugged at him even more, causing him to hesitate to leave. Jake wanted to turn back just to see what was happening, why there was only one killer.

Screw it.

Jake entered the Treatment Theatre, but the unexpected happened.

The doors slammed shut.

Crows flew out, and it seems that the place was now empty of crows. The Entity’s presence was gone in this place.

Wait, what?

Jake was even more curious now. He moved slowly, soon reaching the center room. There stood the Doctor, but he was fiddling with the contraption on his head. Jake just watched, not daring to do anything.

“Ugh, finally.” The Doctor threw off the contraption, and Jake stifled a gasp. This was the first time Jake has seen one of the killers talk. His voice was rough, and it sounded like he had a really bad sore throat. However, it was still better than what Jake though.

“How’d it go, Herman?” The Nurse floated into the room. She looked unarmed, not holding the bone saw she normally had. So the Doctor’s name was Herman? Alright. Jake backed away slowly, focusing on the conversation just based on their voices instead. No benefits to being caught here.

“He’s definitely getting better, Sally. I’m just afraid how he will use him,” the Doctor, or, Herman, said.

“Philip said he was watching, and that you did well, seeing as you’re still new. But, I’m still afraid of what he will do, as you said.” The Nurse’s, or Sally’s, voice was muffled, but that was a given with the bag on her head. Her voice was clear otherwise, and it sounds decent, actually. Jake could see that being the voice of a singer.

_“Who’s Philip?”_ Jake muttered to himself. He still had many questions since that meeting with the Entity, and a lot of them were still unsolved. He needed answers to this, and he felt like he was somehow in the middle of all this mess.

“That would be me.”

Jake yelped, causing the conversation in the other room to cease. But that wasn’t Jake’s main concern.

Oh no, it was the fact that the Wraith was right in front of him, staring straight into his soul. Jake was afraid to move, scared of what will happen, now that he was discovered. Soon, the Nurse and the Doctor came, stopping once they saw Jake sitting down against the wall, the Wraith just right in front of him.

“What are you doing here!? You’re not supposed to be here!” the Nurse yelled. Now, Jake was afraid. What are they going to do to him?

“Now, calm down Sally. He’s here for a reason, and I don’t think I like it,” Philip said, in a grim tone.

“Jake. Did the doors close?” Philip asked, and Jake nodded, trying to back up even more than possible.

“Well, then this was planned by him. He only closes them once every survivor escapes, and I doubt this would be a mistake. He would never make such a mistake.” Philip glanced over to Sally, and she nodded in agreement. Herman was still relatively new, but it seems he understood what was happening.

“So, what do we do about him?” Herman asked. They went silent for a while, before Philip gave a reply.

“Leave him be, I guess. Or would you like to join us?”

* * *

 

So here Jake was, sitting in the center room, surrounded by killers who has sacrificed his friends and him before. Jake was afraid to move, to do anything, in fear that one of the killers around him will do something.

“So, this is awkward.” Sally’s voice made Jake flinch. He was on overdrive currently, ready to move and run at any time.

“Yeah…” Jake answered, unsure of what to say. He wasn’t sure what to do. Should he just sit there, or should he run? There was nowhere to escape, anyway, so what the heck. What are his friends thinking, seeing as he didn’t escape? So many questions.

“How about this, you ask us any questions you want, and we’ll try to answer them, as much as we can say, until everyone gets here. Or, at least, until the doors or the hatch opens. Ok?” Philip asked him. Jake was still wary of addressing the killers. What should he call them?

“Ok, I guess. Nothing better to do, seeing as I’m locked here,” Jake replied, trying to calm himself. A new question popped into his head.

Did the Entity plan this?

The one trial, where Midnight was conveniently gone, he gets trapped here. The killers are all unarmed, and they look much different from what Jake was used to seeing. They look, _tame_.

They didn’t look like they were here to kill. They looked just like the group of survivors. They looked like they _didn’t want to kill._ This confirmed Jake’s theory. The theory that caused all of this to happen in the first place, with him caught along the winds of fate that brought him here.

The killers were as trapped as they were.

With that reason, there was no reason to be afraid of them. They didn’t want to murder. But, what separates them from survivor and killer? The Entity’s control?

“Why do you kill us,” was Jake’s first question. He got a chance to ask, so he’s going to be asking. He’ll start at the basics.

“Well, we don’t want to. We have killed people before, yes. But those were driven by rage and sadness, by some emotion, and we regret it every minute we live. We lost sight of why we live. Some of us more than others,” the Wraith glanced to the Nurse, who just lowered her covered head.

“We made the mistake of losing control, and we hate ourselves for ever doing that to a living soul. Ever since coming here, we vowed that if we left, we will never hurt a human for as long as we live.” Jake was shocked by the complex emotion that the Wraith, no, Philip, was showing. They had emotions. They have souls. They were _human_.

“But the Entity is a twisted being. With those crows, we could only do so much. If we try and resist, we get messed up, mangled, maybe even killed. We know that the Entity will never kill you guys, so we used you guys as a shield, a scapegoat. For that, I apologize. No one should have to go through what you have went to.” Philip lowered his head, and Jake was baffled on what to do. What would anyone do, in this situation?

“So, when I saw you last time at the Farms…” Jake trailed off.

“Yes. That was an example of what the Entity would do to us. That trial, he was unpleased with the results. He thought that I should have done better, and that I was purposely missing my hits on you that time,” Philip explained. Jake was taken aback with this new information. The killers were treated like slaves, punished when failed, and doing all its work for it.

They were treated worse than the survivors.

“This might seem like all a big lie, but trust us when we say this. _We don’t want to kill._ We want to live normal lives, just like everyone else. We thought when he dragged us in to talk, that we would be able to escape. That he was letting us go. But it was worse.” Philip and Herman flinched when Sally said that, which Jake caught.

“What do you mean?” Jake asked, not sure if he really wanted to know.

“We were not killers to begin with. Oh, no, we could never be such twisted humans,” Herman began, and Jake felt the atmosphere drop.

“We were survivors.”


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Holy shit. We're at around 300 views, and I must say, thanks. I never expected people to like reading my shit. Or maybe it's people just reading the first chapter and dropping, but either way. Maybe the next chapter will be a fun spinoff or something, maybe a holiday special. Or maybe a ship or something. Comment and I'll try my best. Here's a something that I did when I really should be doing an assignment that is due tomorrow, and I haven't started. Hoo boy.

“Wait, what!?” Jake exclaimed loudly. These killers were survivors once!? That clicked the pieces within Jake’s head.

“We were survivors just like you, dragged into the Nightmare by the Entity. We were normal humans, well, as normal as we were when you kill someone, but normal nonetheless. We did the tasks you did, repair generators, escape killers, and survive. We did it for so long, I can’t even remember anything from the human world. What sunlight was like.” Philip looked up, as if imagining the sun high up, past the ceiling of the building they were in.

“Herman was the last one in our group, and our last hope. He was the last one among us who got turned into killers. He was the one with so much hope, hope that our group would get out of the Nightmare, and return to where we came from. When that hope was gone, our group was doomed.” Herman looked up, a sad smile on his face.

“Evan was first. He was gone one trial, and the next we saw him as the Trapper. Given up hope, he donned the mask bestowed by the Entity, and everything was gone. Every semblance of human emotion. Slowly all of us began changing. Me to the Wraith, Max to the Hillbilly, Sally to the Nurse, Lisa to the Hag, and finally, Herman to the Doctor. We were dragged in after a trial, much like you, and we had a conversation. If we weren’t careful, our emotions would have been gone too, and we’ll just be an empty shell of a human,” Philip explained, and Jake noticed one person not mentioned.

“What about Michael?” Jake asked.

“He was added in a bit after Sally changed. He was never a part of us. He actually _enjoys_ hurting people. The Entity probably saw him as his ideal servant, killing just for the fun of it, no hesitation, not afraid to do it at any cost.” Philip’s eyes narrowed at the mention of Michael. Looks like he wasn’t liked, even by the killers.

“Wait, so are all the killers like you guys?” Jake asked, just to clarify.

“Yeah, mostly. Exception being Myers. All of us were happy that we were together again, but not like this. Not with us having to do the thing we regretted for all our lives,” Herman spoke for the first time.

“We cried, after every trial, since we started this whole event. We wanted a way out, a way to not do these twisted games, an _option_. But there were none. Until you entered the equation.” Sally looked up towards Jake, and Jake could sense a smile, even with the bag on her face.

“You were our trump card, our Joker, in a sense. You knew our situation, and you had the countermeasures required to do something. You, being a survivor, could just do anything you want, since you’re not bound by the rules of the Entity of serving him within a trial. Your freedom, plus the knowledge of the Entity’s plan, made you a possible key to escape this wretched world. However, the Entity wasn’t going to take all of this with no fight. He decided to accelerate the process, dragging you in, even with the hope of escape still in you.” Philip’s expression grew brighter with every word he said.

“He believes that it worked, but it seems quite the opposite. He gave you abilities, as well as your partner, Midnight, was it? Those combinations gave you an even bigger leverage, able to wander around even more, picking up clues of what was happening around the Nightmare. We hoped that it would soon lead you to us, and here we are. But, the Entity did _decide_ to close you in, so that means something else is happening that we aren’t aware of. We need to be careful.”

The sound of wind caught Jake’s ears. The hatch was open. It seems the killers were alerted of it, too. They slowly got up, before Herman asked Jake to follow him. He led him to the hatch, which was in what seemed to be an office.

“Here you go. Remember, don’t tell the others about this. It might just cause them to lose their hope of escape. That hope is what will keep you alive. We’ll continue what we’re doing, unfortunately, but we’ll try to avoid you, so you can go around the Nightmare and try to piece together clues. If you find something, move towards an unobserved part of the arena, and wait for Philip. He’ll be keeping an eye on you. Once there are no eyes, he’ll come up to you. Alright?” Jake nodded, determination in high levels. He wanted to do something, and now the chance of escape seemed to have opened in front of him.

“Thanks. Keep in mind, you’re our last hope. Our King in a chess game. The Ace of Spades. Don’t act suspicious, don’t act unlike normal. You’re still Jake Park, the boy with a messy past. You’re still you. Don’t let any of this affect you. We’ll tell the others about you, so you don’t have to worry about most of us, except Myers. He’s still as crazy as he was. See you around, and good luck.” Jake sent a final smile to Herman, before he leapt into the hatch.

* * *

 

Jake was in the same tunnel as before, and it led to the exact same place: the campfire. He popped out, and everyone looked up at him.

“Jake, you okay?” Claudette asked, and Jake nodded with a small smile.

“Yeah, that was just a long chase. I couldn’t get to the doors, so I went for the hatch after you guys left. The Doctor just kept popping up everywhere, so it took some time.” Everyone seem to take that explanation relatively well, and they were back doing their own thing.

Jake wandered into the forest, sitting by one of the many trees far from the campfire. He leaned against the tree, keeping his back in the direction of the fire. The night sky of the Nightmare was truly beautiful, and even after seeing it so many times, he still can’t get sick of it.

_“You had a fun trial, didn’t you?”_ Midnight’s voice came into his head, causing Jake to smile. Midnight, his partner in crime, was back, and not dead. Wonderful.

_“Oh, something interesting happened. Well, that sounds like a lot of fun. Glad I wasn’t there.”_ Jake could practically feel Midnight’s saltiness. Well, the one match he wasn’t there, and Jake had a huge revelation. Anyone would be mad.

“You get the idea, yeah?” Jake asked, and Midnight nodded, landing on the ground in front of him.

_“Yeah. Poke around, gather intel, and plan some way out of here. I must say, since I was technically created here, I am curious as how will the outside world look like. I know that it’s technically my duty to serve the Entity with no exceptions, but screw that. I guess this counts as me rebelling.”_

Jake smiled at the bird, raising his arm so that Midnight can perch there. The bond he had developed with the crow was as strong as ever, and to think it all started with a trap. Now, the crow was his best friend and weapon. He was close to invincible in trials, able to escape and evade the killers almost every time, and not get hooked once at all since the incident.

“I’m so glad you were the one given to me,” Jake said, glancing up into the stars once again. He could have gotten any other crow out there. All with different personalities, all possibly ready to return to the Entity at any time. But, defying the odds, he got Midnight, the one crow who was sick of being in the Nightmare. The one crow that was willing to stand up to the Entity, and escape, without even knowing what was out there.

_“Oh, please. You’re getting all sappy and shit. Ew. Save that for when we get out or something. For now, go sleep or something. I’ll call you when the fog rolls in.”_ Jake smiled once more, before closing his eyes, feeling the tiredness take over him, while the information he just got scrambled his mind.

* * *

 

_“Wake up, Jake.”_

_Jake woke up in a familiar room. The wooden ceiling, along with the minimal decorations, yes, he knew where he was._

_He was in his cabin, by the woods._

_The voice came from his mother, to his right. He got out of the bed, and turned to face her. She smiled at him, offering him a cup of water._

_“Here you go. I hope you didn’t mind that I let myself in,” she said in an apologetic tone, and Jake reassured her that it was okay, taking and drinking the cup his mother offered him. His mother had the key, so she was allowed to come in._

_“Mom, not that I’m not happy to see you, but why are you here? You usually visit at the end of every month, so why did you come all of a sudden today?” Jake asked, confused. His mother was very organized, making sure to spend time with his brother and father, even if Jake didn’t like them. Jake couldn’t just have her all to himself._

_“Well, I thought that it would be a nice surprise. Your father finally listened to my advice, and took a break. Since he is off somewhere, and your brother is still over in Canada, I decided to come spend time with you,” she said excitedly. Jake smiled, watching his mother getting excited just to be with him. He was, too. He loved this woman to the end of the world._

_“So, how have you been?” She asked. Jake began telling her about what happened to him, his short adventures in the woods, his small part time job at a café close to the cabin, and everything in between. He kept nothing hidden, telling her of the embarrassing moments, the funny ones, the sad ones, and the happy ones._

_His mother listened to his story, interrupting only when Jake asked her a question. Together, they lost the track of time. They spoke, joked, laughed, all the way until it was dark. Together, there was nothing that could tear them apart. They would do anything for each other._

_“Jake, what do you want to be when you do decide?” Jake sensed a feeling of déjà vu. This felt familiar, but he could feel something off._

_“Jake?” His mother asked. Jake looked around, trying to think straight. What happens? What was going to happen? Why was his mind going crazy? What was his instincts warning him about?_

_“Are you okay?” She asked once again. Jake looked at her, and he felt something off once again. What was happening?_

_It was then Jake noticed something peculiar. His mother was dressed in an evening dress, as she usually does, but something was different. She was wearing a_ black _dress. She never wears black._

_“Did you have that on the entire day?” Jake asked, and his mother looked at him weirdly._

_“The dress? Of course, Jake. What’s wrong?” She looked even more concerned right now, and Jake wanted to die, making his mother concerned. He lowered his head, mind going crazy. He felt like he was almost there, at the verge of discovering something._

_“Do you need something? I’m right here, my baby.”_

_That sealed the deal. His mother never called him her baby before. She only called him her bodyguard, never her baby. Jake could feel it clearly now. This was not his home. This was not his world._

_“You’re not my mother,” he muttered. He glanced up, eyes sharp, defenses up. This lady was not his mother. This was not his house._

_“What are you saying, Jake?” His mother, no, the woman, looked at him, eyes pleading. But Jake wasn’t a fool. He can tell a real from a fake._

_“How many languages can I speak?” He asked. Only his mother knew how many. No one else could know._

_“Well, English, Korean, Chinese, Spanish and French. You took those courses when you father forced you to. What’s wrong?” He knew it. This person was not his mother._

_“Who are you?” He demanded, and his mother gripped his shoulders, and Jake could immediately feel so many things wrong. He cursed himself for not noticing them sooner._

_“I’m your mother, Jake! What’s going on?” She raised her voice. She never did that. Jake backed up, his back hitting the wall._

_“My mother would never wear black. She deemed it too sad of a color, and would only do so during funerals. She would never raise her voice, and she would never hurt her child. She would never forget every single detail of her children, and every single memory. She sang to me, when I was a child. She sang to me in Japanese, and I would ask her to teach me the language. My father and brother didn’t know about this, just her. You, are not my mother. Who are you!?”_

_Everything went silent. The birds chirping outside were quiet. Nothing moved. No cars outside. No insects. Nothing. Absolute silence._

**_“Well, aren’t you a sharp one.”_** The voice that echoed from his mother was entirely different. It was one that Jake was sadly familiar to.

The Entity.

“What do you want!?” He yelled. The Entity, still in the form of Jake’s mother, chuckled deeply.

**_“Oh, nothing. Don’t worry about it. Have a nice day~,”_** it said in a singsong voice. The world around him melted, and Jake once more fell into darkness.

* * *

 

_“Jake!”_ Midnight’s voice woke Jake up instantly. Jake jolted, feeling a headache coming on.

_“The fog’s coming in, no time to take a beauty nap.”_ Jake sighed, struggling to his feet, just as the fog began circling around him. Midnight landed on his shoulder, and Jake felt the land around them change. Looks like they’re going for a trial.

Here they were. Lampkin Lane, Haddonfield. This was the closest thing to a real-life location since they were here, and if there were any connections, Jake wouldn’t doubt that they’ll be here.

_“Time to start the investigation. I’ll check the killer, make sure it isn’t Michael, and you can work on a generator or something until I get back.”_ Midnight flew off, while Jake began with the Strode Realty. Laurie said that she used to live here, and one day she woke up here, with no one in sight.

Jake moved up, into the room that was labeled ‘Laurie Strode’. He looked around, keeping his eyes peeled for anything, while also being alert in case of a killer. They did say they were going to stay away from certain areas, areas that they believe are important to search.

He found a newspaper on the ground, and checked the date on it.

“October 28th, 1978, huh,” Jake muttered to himself. That was around Halloween, and Laurie said that Michael usually committed murder around that day. But what fascinated Jake was the year. 1978, and Jake was dragged in on 2016. The time gap was certainly there, but how did he appear in the Nightmare before Laurie?

Maybe it was just a coincidence, but Jake highly doubted it. There was no way Laurie would just leave things on the floor. She was more organized, preferring to keep things neat and tidy. Jake knew he could just ask her, but that would bring up some questions that he would rather not answer.

_“It’s the Hag. She glanced at me, and gave me a small nod. It seems the others weren’t lying, and they are working to help with your investigation. You find anything?”_ Midnight landed on the window sill, and Jake sat down on the bed in the room.

“The newspaper, and its date. It seems this area was taken around the year 1978, but I entered in 2016. Yet, I was in here before Laurie, and had to teach her how to do most of the mechanical stuff. The only reasonable explanation would be that she is from 1978, and that doesn’t matter in this world. Time is malleable, and it seems the Entity is able to move back and forth in time to pull victims and killers,” Jake deduced. Midnight looked impressed, and Jake was, too. Looks like those forced lessons at school had at least some benefit.

“If everything here is from 1978, then there should be plenty of hints left around the area. I’m going to look around the area, maybe in the other rooms.” Midnight nodded, as he flew out the window. Jake wandered into the next room, which wasn’t labeled. It looked to be the master bedroom, with a multitude of items in there.

The TV was a giveaway. It was a 13” Sony Trinitron TV, and Jake can only thank Park Tech for that information. His father had forced him to be familiar with technology, old and new, just so that he could create better tech for the company. But back on track. That model was indeed made in 1987, the year said on the newspaper. Assuming that the Strodes purchased a new TV set recently, this made sense.

This information was interesting, but it didn’t serve much to actually finding a way out. It does help with knowing the Entity, and what it was capable of.

Jake, satisfied with the information, went to grab the newspaper in Laurie’s room. He then tried to find an unobserved area, and he had to settle with the basement of the opposite house. He stayed quiet, and soon Philip appeared into existence, just like he said he would.

“Here. The time around here is weird. This place was taken or replicated in 1987, yet I was here before this was here. I was dragged in in 2016. This shows that the Entity is at least able to travel between time, or that this dimension is warped in some way in the time-space continuum.” Jake passed the newspaper to Philip, and he nodded.

“It doesn’t help with finding a way out, but it helps to know things about the Entity. It’s important to know your enemy, after all,” Philip said, and Jake nodded.

“I’m going to be looking around more, and you just follow me, invisible, and listen to me ramble. It’ll give you clues, and I’ll pass anything I find important to you. Alright?” Jake asked, and Philip nodded. It was when he was about to vanish when the unexpected happen.

“Jake?”


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The bonus chapters I promised will be a different book altogether, or maybe as bonus chapters after the book is done. Don't worry yourselves if you suggested something. Anyway, in this chapter, I try to tackle some astrophysics and deep sciency shit. I'm 15. I hope I did it alright. Also, some bullshit was thrown in here and there. Kudos to you if you can find it all. And yes, the journal entries are legit.

“Min?” Jake whispered. Shit. She came in just at the wrong time.

There she was, coming down the stairs, and Jake was panicking. What would he do about Philip!?

_“Don’t worry about me,”_ Philip said, as he began to vanish, without even sounding his bell. Soon, he was just empty space, with nothing but ripples where he was. Those ripples moved towards the wall, just as Feng Min entered the room.

“What’s wrong?” Jake asked, channeling his best acting skills, which, to be honest, isn’t very good at all. Drama classes weren’t his forte, with him having to act to be something he’s not.

“Nothing. What are you doing here? There aren’t any generators here,” she whispered, and Jake unconsciously glanced over to where Philip was.

The ripples weren’t there anymore.

‘He’s good,’ Jake thought to himself. He shook his head, before turning back to Feng Min.

“I was just checking to be safe. Let’s get out of here,” Jake said, and they slowly made their way out and towards the Strode Realty once more.

“Hey, have you seen the killer?” Jake asked, and Feng Min nodded. She then asked him to follow her in, and they worked on the generator in the backyard.

“It’s the Hag,” Feng Min said over the rumblings of the generator, hoping that the pistons would drown out her voice. They worked silently after that, occasionally starting up some small talk among them, such as the others, number of generators left, and what to do when they get to an exit.

The generator popped, leaving them with 4 more generators. They separated, after deciding that splitting up would be better for covering more ground. Now, Jake was on his own again.

Jake was looking around the back when he saw the Hag, or Lisa. She glanced at Jake, before going in for a swipe. Jake dodged, slightly confused, since they were supposed to avoid him.

“Sorry, he’s watching. Run, I’ll move slower,” Lisa whispered into his ear. He gave an undistinguishable nod, and began running. He leapt over the window, jumped over a pulled-down pallet, and kept running. After a while, he slowed his moving, to not leave tracks for Lisa to follow.

_“Yo, I found something. Come over to the police car on the main street.”_ Jake moved slowly, crawling along the hedges to hide himself. He soon arrived at the car, and Midnight was on the car roof.

_“Look inside. There seems to be something in there.”_ Jake glanced in, and there indeed was something in there. It looked to be some sort of book, and Jake slowly opened the door, surprised that it wasn’t locked, and grabbed it.

The book was thick and dusty, with many pages marked by bookmarks. The cover was old leather, and the pages were yellowed. Whatever it is, it certainly wasn’t here recently. This could possibly be left by some older survivor, or possibly someone else. Jake hoped it was the latter, as it brings up the question of where this person went.

Jake stashed the book on the inside of his jacket, seeing as his pockets were too small. He made sure that it wouldn’t fall off when he ran, and he continued on. He worked on a generator, so that his team won’t get suspicious.

Jake was halfway done when another generator popped, leaving three more, or was it two? He couldn’t remember. He was too interested in that book he found. It looked like some sort of journal or diary, based on the cover and the many bookmarks. Either way, it’ll be informational.

His generator popped, and the exits sounded. Oh, they were done? Jake made his way slowly to the exit and held down the door lever, waiting and keeping an eye around him for Lisa, or possibly the others.

“Jake!” He turned around to see Claudette there, and she looked relieved. When the door opened, they both made it outside, but they didn’t leave the arena yet. In case Feng Min was hooked, they both can then make their way to save her. No one deserved to get sacrificed.

“Who else is here?” Jake asked, and Claudette replied with just them and Feng Min. Only three. They stood there, waiting, ready to move back in at the sign of a scream, or out if they saw the killer.

_“She went out the other door. You guys can go. I checked the perimeter, no one but the Hag is left.”_ Jake nodded slightly, before getting Claudette to escape with him.

“But what about Min!?” She asked worriedly.

“She’s fine. She went out the other door,” Jake replied smoothly, missing the confused glance Claudette gave him.

When they got back to the fireplace, Feng Min was indeed there, and Claudette was slightly shocked on how Jake knew that. She decided to keep it away for later, asking when the time is right.

“I’ll be back,” Jake said, as he walked into the woods once more. Claudette noticed that he has been doing that quite often now. It’s fine, but it is slightly worrying.

* * *

 

Jake pulled out the book from his jacket, and sat by his usual seat. He had to heighten his senses to see the words well in the dark, which also helped him know if anyone was coming. So far, no one.

Jake flipped the cover over, and the first line read ‘The Journal of Benedict Baker, 1956’. Could this Benedict Baker be a past survivor? Or someone else? Jake was too curious.

“September 12, 1956. I began my search in the summer of 1956 after hearing of the town of Weeks, a place that had an unusual number of missing persons reports. America is filled with such towns. But what made this one more odd than some, was that there had never been a report of a body found. Indeed, the number of open missing cases stood at a staggering 364, the last of which happened a mere ten weeks ago. So, thusly I embark on my journey.”

That was the first entry, Jake thought to himself. It seems that this Benedict Baker person was a detective, looking into missing persons cases in this town called Weeks. Jake hasn’t heard of it before, but he felt like he should have. 364 missing persons. That doesn’t just get brushed under the rug. That’s an insane number. What’s more insane is that there weren’t any found yet.

But if this was linked to the Entity, why would he just pick 364 people from one area? Wouldn’t that just arouse suspicion? He could pick from any place in the world, but only that area? Now that he thought of it, the Entity seemed to be picking only people from America, or somewhere close. Feng Min was Chinese-Canadian, which definitely changed things. Nea was of Scottish descent, but she said she has lived in America her entire life.

So, the Entity seems to be plucking people up from around America and Canada, while no one seems to be reporting any of these news on the media. It could be just that they have not enough evidence that it happened, or something similar. Those were common in America, especially if you are part of the higher echelons of the society. Censorship happens very often.

This Benedict Baker person seemed to be someone who came from the outside, and got trapped here. Just like Jake, and the rest of the survivors. Just like Philip and the rest of the killers.

Next entry.

Jake slowly read under the light of the moonlight, while his ears kept aware of his friends’ location. It was hard, but Jake managed. It was around the 4th entry where things got interesting.

“I cannot explain what happened today. I awoke to find myself in this strange place. I have no memory of how I came here. My last recollection was of leaving Wetherfield and beginning my journey towards The Macmillan Estate. The last part I had to travel by foot... A seemingly never ending fire burns next to me. I cannot even tell how long I lay asleep. This area of the woods seems to have no day or night, just an intolerable gloom. Unsure what awaits me but I will keep filling this journal. Maybe with a hope to warn others.”

That sounded like the campfire. An unending fire, huh. So, Jake was right. This Benedict Baker was an older generation of survivors, possibly around the time of the present killers. Then again, time is moldable here, so Jake wasn’t too sure about that.

What was interesting was that there wasn’t a date or something labeled. If this was on the same track as the past entries, then a date should be present. So, either this meant that something drastic happened, such as him getting pulled in by the Entity; therefore losing the track of time, or there could have been a different writer.

“1896. Am I alive? I no longer know or care. I have tried to hike my way out of these forsaken woods to no avail. Multiple times I have tried to escape the fog and each time, I have come face to face with a nameless terror that stalks the darkness. A being in human form. Even though I feel ‘human’ is an exaggeration. It is a shadow of its former self. A horrid shadow. I fear I cannot escape this place, nor the being stalking these woods. I just barely managed to escape. Silence is key, it seems.

I have also seen, this… evil thing. This Entity reaches out to pluck those who fall into its path, bringing them to its hideous construct where it plays with their soul for all eternity. The Entity curses these innocents with an endless game of life and death. Each death brings an awakening into a fresh hell where the hunt begins again. I am but a mere puppet in this grim theatre.”

1896? Wasn’t the year 1956? And what was this ‘nameless terror’? The woods seemed clear when Jake tried to escape; it just looped around, so he couldn’t get out. He also mentioned the Entity, calling the trials ‘an endless game of life and death’. That was interesting.

First off, the date. That was seriously peculiar. If the concept of time really changed, would a person’s perception of it? That would technically make time travel possible, would it not? Then again, Entities don’t exist according to science.

It seems that time was the key component to this world. Even as time progresses here, it is impossible to track it. Jake didn’t even know if they were moving forward or back, depending on how you saw it. Every sense of logic in him screamed at him, telling him that of course time is progressing forward. But logic was out the window since the beginning.

Another question popped into his head while he thought. If they did manage to get out, no, _when_ , are they confirmed to return to their own times? Or will they just be together, in a different time? They could be right in the middle of World War 2, if they weren’t lucky. And they’ll immediately get shot and die. Maybe they'll get Revolutionary Era France and get beheaded on the guillotine.

Jake turned to the last page of the book and found a pen clipped on the page. He picked it up, and began writing his theories. It was a way for him to ensure that even if he doesn’t escape, die in the process, or get turned into a killer, his knowledge can be passed on to the others.

Wait. Jake hasn’t actually asked the killers before, but what time period were they from? If they were from around the same period of time, then that changes the theory of different survivors from different times. After all, if the Entity grabs a pile of survivors from a place and time, then it shows that its powers are limited. It isn’t all powerful, able to grab whatever it wants just for its entertainment. No, the people it grabs are _planned_.

Unless the Entity was grabbing people out of pure coincidence, Jake could only see one correlation in terms of backstory for the other survivors and him.

They were outcasts in the world. No one wanted them.

There was Claudette, who was a shut in obsessed with science and botany. She didn’t socialize well, gaining her extensive knowledge from a computer screen.

Dwight, the new employee at a corporation. He was bullied in high school, shunned, and thus learned how to avoid attention. His lack of presence in the world could be seen as astounding.

Meg seemed like the oddball, but it made sense once you thought about it. She had so much energy and charisma, she didn’t know how to spend it. Her running managed to get her into a scholarship, but she turned it down to take care of her sick mother. It seems like she was perfectly wanted, but it looks to be the opposite. The people wanted her talents. They gave her a scholarship on her abilities. No one cared for her, except her mother. She stood out. And that seems to be good enough for the Entity.

Nea was a criminal. Literally. She went around, tagging and vandalizing buildings whenever she can. There was no other way to draw attention more than that. You were literally spraying paint for people to notice you.

Laurie was easy. She had a family who cared for her, a nice neighborhood, and a happy life. But Michael came into the picture. The killer who ruthlessly stalked her, and killed all her family members. She was alone. No one wanted to associate with her, in fear of Michael Myers making a move.

Ace, huh. He was a lucky guy, no doubt. He was an avid gambler, able to turn the odds in his favor. He had a way to persuade Lady Luck, but it came with double the payback. He definitely lost in the big game, ending up here somehow. But, when it comes down to it, Ace was hated for his skill.

Feng Min. Jake already knew her story, and he could see it. She was a huge gamer, nicknamed the ‘Shining Lion’, but it came down, crash and burn. Her performance dropped, she got kicked out of the team, and there she was. Homeless, no idea what to do with her life.

And then there was him. The man raised to be the noble that everyone hated. He was to be the leader of Park Tech, but he ran from that life. Living in the woods, away from all social interactions. A lone target.

The stories and theme match up.

Jake documented all of that, including names, so that the next batch of survivors, if there were more, could have an idea of what they’re up against.

This, again, made Jake ponder about the backstories about the killers. Were their correlations similar? Or was it based on their killing ability from the start? That didn’t make sense, seeing as they were survivors at the start too.

Jake sighed, getting up and joining the group. There was no point in sitting around and trying to guess the conclusion. The fog began rolling in, and it circled around Jake once more.

Time to get some hands-on experience.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go again. Welcome back to your regularly scheduled chapter. Not. I have no idea what I'm doing half the time. I'm shocked you people like me going insane and making shit up on the spot. Anyway, in this chapter, I try to rationalize killing again. Woohoo. Spoilers.

Jake was in the Crotus Prenn Asylum. Haven’t been here in a while. He was on the top floor of the broken asylum, right beside a generator. Jake wasted no time, getting on his knees and pulling down the panel on the side of the generator. Connect wires, attach cogs, screw some bolts in their place, stop the occasional explosion from a surge of power.

His mind was wandering while his hands worked. He thought of the theories that he had came up with. Time changes, relationship between survivors, the Entity’s behavior. Jake wanted to solve this mystery, this enigma. He wanted answers, answers that wouldn’t bring up even more questions. A clear cut answer.

However, the only one who held these answers were the Entity, and Jake wasn’t just going to approach him and ask him. That’d be suicide, and Jake wasn’t planning to die, not yet.

The generator popped, and Jake was reminded that he was supposed to be investigating. Nea said that she was brought in along with the asylum, so Jake should be able to find some tags she made, or any sign of modern society.

Jake looked around, noticing that everything here was trashed, heaps of broken electronics in piles. Jake crouched and walked, moving along the wall to try to find any clues.

_“I’m going to look outside. Call me if you leave, or if you encounter killer, or if you want to switch. Switching is great,”_ Midnight hinted. Jake sighed, knowing that the crow was a huge fan of switching. He loved running around in Jake’s body, feeling the wind.

“You know what? Being in crow form will help with searching. Okay, let’s switch.” Jake thought he heard a small cheer of joy from Midnight, as he closed his eyes. By the time his eyes opened again, he was once again struck with the feeling of his body switching. Now, he was a crow.

“Fuck yeah!” He heard Midnight whisper loudly. Jake chuckled inwardly, before making his way out of the asylum. That wasn’t hard. It had no roof.

* * *

 

Jake began to notice different things about the arena, after turning into a crow. Small details that he was too busy running away from a killer to notice. He noticed newspaper clippings in the shack, as well as some scattered throughout the field. Jake flew to one, reading it closely.

It was of the asylum burning down. Fuck. Jake looked at the others, and they were all similar. Old text surrounding the mystery of the asylum. Nothing that would connect to other survivors, or any sign of modern society. No tech left, no news from the current world, nothing. Jake sighed, deciding to think about it at a safe place – in the sky.

Jake flew up, and stayed in the air. He was nowhere close to the moonlight, not wanting to distract the other survivors. He flew in a straight line, but was cautious to not fly too far away from the arena. He needed to be there in case of a switch.

His thoughts overcame his mind as he flew into the gentle breeze. Does the Entity replicate the arena at its time? That was his main concern. If it did, then there would be no point to this. Investigating the arenas would just be similar to looking in the past. No actual evidence of them escaping being possible.

If so, does it replicate it during the time, and introduce it to them in an order, or does it just pick it out of time? If it’s the former, then the Entity couldn’t jump through time. That would just throw half his theories out the window, and leave him with some made up facts.

Jake was flying straight when he hit his head on something. Wait. He was in the air.

Jake looked up, and saw nothing. It looked just like the sky anywhere else, but when he touched it, it felt solid. It was a barrier, or something of the sort. Jake tried to ram against it, but it was like running into a brick wall.

He looked back before realizing how far he had flown away from the asylum. It was far, but not far enough that he couldn’t see the details of the asylum. Jake estimated it to be around a football field’s length, give or take.

‘Better head back’, Jake thought to himself, as he began flying back. But one new question was in his head.

What was that barrier?

* * *

 

Midnight was having the time of his life. He loved whenever he got to run around, feeling the adrenaline pumping, his heart thumping as he ran. It felt amazing. If Midnight could have a human body, he would definitely want one.

He was currently working on a hex totem. It looked to be for Thrill of the Hunt, based on the sigil on the dirt beside it. Constantly surveying arenas have led him to be familiar with these hex sigils and their uses. He knew all of them like the back of his hand.

Midnight was feeling bored as he tried to extinguish the weird flame below the totem. It seemed to be keeping the totem together, but not at all at the same time. He could just kick it down, but one look away and everything was back.

He swiped at the flame, tried to cover it with a skull, smother it with dirt, but it wasn’t working. Midnight growled, as he tried everything he could. However, the method was quite simple.

Midnight tried stepping on the flame. And it worked. Midnight almost screamed in frustration, but held himself just in time. He almost forgot that he was in a hunting zone, and he was the prey.

Midnight walked away, still growling and upset from all those failed attempts. He wanted to hurt something. He didn’t care if it was a killer, a survivor, whatever. His eyes glowed red without him knowing, and his aura vision activated. Midnight was slightly surprised, but it was too late. It seemed to be going into overboard, showing him the auras of so many other things. He could see hooks, generators, and every moving thing on the arena, including the crows on certain rocks.

Midnight felt his eyes hurt, so he closed them, and held onto his head. His knees buckled, and Midnight fell, his other hand rushing out to stable himself. The stinging sensation was still there, prickling, and Midnight bit into Jake’s scarf, trying not to scream. He didn’t need people coming to him, questioning what was happening.

This never happened before. Even when Midnight was grumpy in Jake’s body, he always had control over his aura vision. Everything just went out of control, and everything was revealed to him. He could see where the killer, the Nurse, was, the crows, the hooks, and generators. He didn’t see anyone else, which worried him. A one on one? That was rare, but it happens.

**_“Well, congratulations.”_** Midnight felt the voice echo, pushing him down on the ground. He screamed, not being able to handle it anymore. The pressure built up in his eyes, and his body felt so heavy. Everything felt different.

**_“You seemed to have opened up to a new ability. Now, Jake would be able to use your normal aura vision, and you’ll get this upgraded one. This is going great.”_** Midnight felt something pound in his head, and he clenched it, head resting on the dirt. He opened his eyes, and saw so many things, even though he was facing the ground. He quickly shut his eyes, as opening them made them hurt even more. He could feel the air around him fluctuate, things around him change.

**_“Well, I’ll leave you to your suffering. Enjoy,”_** The voice of the Entity left, and gravity felt normal again. Midnight felt lighter, and the ache was gone. He got up, everything in disarray. He leaned against a tree, hand holding his head. Midnight opened his eyes once more, and everything was back to normal.

Midnight’s eyes were glowing bright red, and the pupils were a crimson. The light in his vision dimmed, and he soon began to lose his consciousness. He slumped onto the tree, sliding to the ground. No, not now. They were in a trial…

* * *

 

Jake was landing on the asylum when he heard a scream, and was suddenly pulled back to his body shortly after. He got up, feeling things around him shift as he got back into his body. Jake used the tree as support, pulling himself up. Was the scream earlier Midnight?

Soon, the Nurse came up to Jake, but she didn’t look like she was going to attack.

“What happened? I was far away, but I heard that. It’s secluded here, so we can talk. The crows also flew away suddenly, do you know what’s up with that?” Sally didn’t hesitate before she asked all the questions. Given her past, she had a caring nature to her allies.

“I, I don’t know. I just woke up suddenly here. I was in the air, flying after I swapped with Midnight…” Jake trailed off. Midnight! How could he have forgot about the crow!? Jake ran towards the asylum, where he last was. Sally called his name, but Jake wasn’t stopping. Sally, having no choice, followed Jake to the asylum.

Jake found Midnight where he was, on the floor on the top floor of the asylum. Except the bird was passed out, lying on the ground. Jake quickly moved to pick the bird up, and cradle him in his arms. Sally soon arrived, and saw the scene.

“Now, that’s cute and all, but can you please just warn me!?” Sally said, exasperated. Jake looked back before a question popped. She floated. How is she tired? Jake wasted no time in pointing that out.

“First off, I don’t know myself. I assume it’s because I have to float with my power. Second, that’s rude. Don’t point that out,” Sally said, and Jake could picture her just looking at him disapprovingly.

“Alright, Sally, calm down. I’m sure he was just worried for his companion.” This was a new voice. It was gruff, but it gave off a gentle sense to it. It was reassuring, like it was there to protect you. Jake turned to find the Trapper, or, Evan, by the doorway.

“Nice to meet you. My name is Evan Macmillan, but I’m sure you already know that.” Evan came over for a handshake, which Jake returned. He was slowly getting used to being around the killers. They were nice people once you get past the killing thing. Well, except for Michael. He’s still batshit crazy.

“First off, I’ll have to apologize for the insane things I have done to you during this time period. I am sincerely sorry about that. I cannot promise that I’ll be able to stop, with him monitoring me.” Evan bowed, deeply, and Jake didn’t know what to do.

“You don’t need to apologize,” Jake finally said, “the others have told me how things have happened for you guys. I should be the one feeling sorry instead, you guys having to go through all that,” he said, lowering his head. Now it seems Evan was at a loss on how to react.

“Well, thank you, boy. I guess, it never occurred to me how bad things were. I just thought it was God’s way of retribution…” Evan muttered slowly, and Jake looked at him, smiling.

“You’re welcome. And I think that you don’t deserve all this. You may have committed a crime,” Jake wanted to avoid saying the word ‘kill’, “but I think that you are all great people. You guys were just victims of circumstances,” Jake said, not breaking eye contact. He was so preoccupied by Evan that he didn’t notice another shadow coming up.

“Well, thank ‘ya, boy. I wouldn’ say that if you knew what we did, though.” Jake turned over to his right to see the Hillbilly, or Max, if he remembered correctly. Max’s voice sounded very stereotypically Southern, and the author, in this moment, having no idea how Southern people speak and how to type it out, since he is Asian, is sorry if he offends anyone.

‘What was that?’ Jake asked, and the author decides to shush him by erasing his memories. Yes, that is possible. Now, time to repair the fourth wall.

“If you don’t mind me asking, would you be okay with telling me…?” Jake muttered, afraid that he would’ve crossed some lines. But the three killers in front of him didn’t seem affected, or it seems so to him.

“…This won’t be pretty, but if you still want to, I’ll start.” Evan was the first to break the awkward silence, and Jake nodded, silently thankful for that.

* * *

 

“Well, I was born to wealth. My father was Archie Macmillan, the head of the Macmillan company, responsible for digging up fossil fuels and providing it to customers. My father was a sweet and gentle man, kind and caring to his children. However, in an office, he was very different. He ruled with an iron hand, often working workers hard and long at minimum wage. But I was young, and seeing my father bringing in so much money, I saw him as my idol. My hopes.”

“However, everyone won’t live forever. Before long after I took over the company, my father fell sick. I searched for a cure, days upon days, all while making sure the company was in ideal shape. I don’t know when, but I soon became so wrapped up in the stress, I lost what was important.” Evan looked to the floor, and Jake could sense it coming. The part of the story that no one wants to tell.

“The Macmillan company motto was ‘Those who cannot carry their own weight don’t deserve the weight they carry’. I begin seeing that as my life motto. My father wasn’t carrying his own weight, so I… I applied my motto. I asked the servants tending to him to leave, saying I’ll care for him myself. The miners began asking questions, and everything was driving me insane. I had no idea what to do.”

“So I did the worst thing of all. I hid some explosives deep in the mine, and asked about 100 or so workers to get to work. When they were down there, I… I blew it up. I didn’t stop there. I… eliminated anyone asking questions, my mind twisting into something insane. I couldn’t, remember exactly what happened, but I was here, by the campfire. Soon, the others came in, and here we are.”

Jake was shocked on how similar their stories were. If things were a bit different in his own home, Jake might have followed the steps of Evan, if he wasn’t careful. Now, Jake was thankful that it didn’t, but it seems that he was still here.

“That… I don’t know what to say. I…” Jake stuttered, eyes still wide.

“Don’t worry. It’s hard to comprehend, everyone else was stunned too when I told them. You don’t need to say anything.” Evan took off his mask and smiled at Jake, a big, warm smile. Jake took the chance to study Evan’s face, and the man looked… normal. There were scars here and there, but other than that, Evan could just pass for any normal human.

“Thank you…” Jake replied, feeling ashamed. He did put the killers on the spot, with the sudden questions asked. He could tell that Evan wasn’t really happy with telling it, but he still did it anyway.

“Anyway, I’ll go next,” Sally said up, floating towards the group. Jake almost forgot she was here.

* * *

 

“Mine isn’t as dramatic, but I’ll try my best. I was a happy lady, with my husband, Andrew. He worked for a logging company, and he was happy. We were happy. He asked me to move into a wooden log cabin by the woods with him, and I happily agreed. It was a wonderful time, but sadly, those don’t last.”

“One day, Andrew’s foreman came at my doorstep, and that day grim news came to me. Andrew was dead. An accident happened. I was heartbroken. I didn’t know what to do, how to live without him. I was desperate, going into the city to try to find a job, any job, just to sustain myself. However, it seems that education and experience were too high of a standard for me, and not one choice was open to me.”

“It was when I lost all hope when I saw the flier. ‘Nurse application for Crotus Prenn Asylum’, it said. I quickly called the number, hoping that the opening was still there, and that I would be able to apply for it. The voice that answered was my saving grace. They would give me a trial run. And that was the worst choice I had made in my life.”

“The Crotus Prenn Asylum was not for the weak of heart. Constant shrieks and yells of despair echoed the halls, dark lights covering the broken walls. It was certainly not up to state. But it didn’t matter to me. There, I met the warden, Patrick Spencer. He was rough, but I endured it. I needed to in order to live, after all. And that was the beginning of the nightmare called the Crotus Prenn Asylum.”

“Some of the patients and workers were interesting and patient with me, seeing as I was new. There was Mary Jenner, the girl with anxiety; her brother, a boy with schizophrenia named Jimmy; and Father Campbell, the priest in the asylum. He tried to show me the ropes of how everything operated, and I tried my best to be a good nurse for these patients. But there were the bad ones.”

“The Orderly, Harvey Kavanagh, was incredibly rude. He treated the patients and staff with no respect, especially towards me. There was the ‘Bad Man’, which was what the staff called the patient. He had multiple personality disorder, occasionally snapping into this killer-esque personality, which was what that got him the nickname. They were the ones who really pushed me past the breaking point.” At this point, Sally’s voice got soft once again. Here we go again.

“I lost it one day. I just went crazy. I had thoughts of purification, thinking that the way to save all of them was ‘purifying’ them. It was a manslaughter. I choked every single person in that asylum, and mists began rising from their mouths. I was so freaked out by what I just did, and the mists, I just sat there, shaking, and that was how the authorities found me.”

“After I recollected my thoughts enough to return, I went back. I wanted to seal the deal, end it all. I set fire to the place, burning it down to the ground, but what arose from the flames wasn’t just smoke. Those weird mists flew straight towards me, and before I knew it, here I was. Even now, I can still hear the cries of the patients. I hate this place, yet I belong here. This is what I deserve.”

Jake was astonished. How were these people sane? This could’ve easily snapped anyone, causing them to just lose it. Yet they were so strong, able to persevere through all that without losing themselves in the process. And that was before even coming here.

The ground rumbled, and Jake heard the telltale signs of the doors opening.

“Well, we’re out of time. Max’s story will have to wait, I guess,” Evan said, regretfully. Jake was then lead out by Sally, with Midnight still in his arms. The bird seemed to stir, but he didn’t get up yet. Jake got the idea.

“Thanks again, and… I’m sorry for everything that you went through.” Sally waved her hand dismissively, and Jake smiled in return. He turned around and left the area, heading into the mist.

But something kept bugging Jake, even throughout all those horrifying stories.

What was that barrier?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did tell you that it was going to be weird. I had to refer to the wiki for the stories, and with the power of bullshitting. I'm not good at this writing thing, I tell you. Let's hope the next one would be better. Here's a head's up for you: I emphasized the barrier for a reason.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess who hasn't updated for a while. I'm back. I have lived through assignment hell. And the semester just began. Hoo boy. Anyway, I tried establishing the survivors more, seeing as I have been focusing mainly on the killers. So, here you go. There might be a ship hidden somewhere, but I'm not going to lean on one particularly. Whatever you find is purely coincidental, or to help the story progress. Also, we're approaching 500 views. What the ever-living fuck. Ok, I guess.

_“That was a nice story time,”_ Midnight’s voice echoed into his head. Jake held back a snort, before letting the crow in his arms fly away.

“So you were awake, you sneaky crow,” Jake said teasingly, a small grin on his face.

_“Of course I was, Jake. Who do you take me as?”_ Midnight flew off, doing a round before landing on Jake’s shoulder. Jake walked slowly in the mist, taking his time alone from everyone else, survivors and killers, to talk with his buddy.

“So?” Jake asked, and he could sense Midnight’s confusion.

_“So what?”_ it asked, and Jake tried to hold in a sigh of exasperation.

“What happened, duh. I honestly thought that was obvious. I mean, I was suddenly dragged into my body. When I found you, you were collapsed. I could have been flying, you thank your lucky stars for that, I tell you.” Jake heard Midnight chuckle, before he laughed himself.

_“Well, it’s nothing too bad. Apparently, the Entity gave us an upgrade.”_ This perked Jake’s interest. Upgrade, he said? Wait, did the Entity control the flow of his powers, or was it up to random? More questions, just what he needed.

“Well, that could’ve be worse. What’s new?” Midnight flew around Jake’s head, this time landing on his head.

_“Well, my aura vision’s better, and he said that you could use my original aura vision now.”_ That was interesting. So, Jake could see friends and foe, well, not really foe at this point. Regardless, it would be a good ability to have if he was doing investigations. Then issues like with Feng Min the other trial won’t happen again.

“That’s nice. That all?” Midnight nodded, and Jake tested it out. He remembered how Midnight did it. Focus on surroundings, try to remember the paths and landscape around you. Feel everything, don’t rely on sight. With sight lowered, using it all at once will power it up.

Jake opened his eyes, and his vision swirled a little before focusing. Instead of the red he got from Midnight’s vision, his was tinted blue. Cool. Midnight flew in front of him, and Jake saw him highlighted with a white aura.

_“Ooh, blue eyes. Pretty. So we have all the primary colors. Red, yellow, and blue. Isn’t that just splendid?”_ Jake wasn’t even going to ask how Midnight knew the basics of color theory. He has learned that the crow knew some random stuff, and it was best to just go along with it.

“Yeah. This is really cool though. Makes me feel like I’m a robot or something,” Jake said, a small smile on his face.

_“Well, I think red works better with it, but sure. Let’s go with that. The blue tint is nice, though. Not gonna lie,”_ Midnight said. Jake soon saw shapes in the distance, seven, to be exact. They were back at the campfire.

_“Turn off the aura vision. You’ll give yourself away. I’ll be by our tree if you need me.”_ Midnight flew off into the foliage, and Jake let the glow in his eyes dissipate softly. When Jake emerged from the bushes, his eyes were back to its normal, brown eyes.

* * *

 

“Jake! Oh, thank God. When you were taken off to a trial alone, we were all worried.” Claudette was the first one to pipe up, and everyone turned to Jake, nodding along with Claudette’s statement. But Jake, in the hyper-sensitive mode that he is in, noticed something off about her words.

“Worried? Why would you, all of a sudden? Not that it isn’t welcome,” Jake added quickly, hoping to not offend the others.

“Well, we talked while you were away, and we have come to the conclusion that you have been acting a little… odd.” At this, Jake glanced to Meg, who just looked at him, no regret or remorse in her eyes. She was the only one he spoke to about the whole powers thing. If she spilled, well, let’s say things will be awkward. At best.

“How so?” Jake asked, taking a seat next to Meg on the log. The logs were arranged in a triangle around the campfire, and currently, Dwight, Claudette and Feng Min were on his left, and Ace, Nea, and Laurie were on his right.

And they were all looking at him.

“Well, you go off into the woods usually after we finish a trial. We get that you don’t like being social. Understandable. But you never left us for so long, and you seem to be only coming back to the fire for a trial or something,” Nea said first.

“Not to mention how you somehow knew Min left, even though we had no way of knowing, in that other trial. Unless you could, I don’t know, see through walls or something, that’s impossible.” At the phrase ‘see through walls’, Jake felt Meg’s gaze on him. He discreetly bumped her with his elbow, and she was back looking at the fire.

“It was just luck,” Jake tried to brush it off, but Ace intervened.

“No, I know luck when I see it, and that was nowhere near luck. From what Claudette described, it was as if you were sure that she was gone, and you didn’t hesitate about it at all. You knew she left.” Jake inwardly cursed. Why did Ace know this, of everything?

“So, mind explaining?” Dwight asked, and Jake had to say, Dwight definitely deserved his position as leader. There was a way that he said things that made you want to listen to him. But Jake was known for keeping calm, and he wasn’t going to panic now.

“Honestly?” Jake asked, and everyone nodded. Meg looked at him, concerned, but Jake had on a poker face. This is for their sake, he thought to himself.

“When I was running to the door, I saw Min run off to a different direction, so I followed her. She was opening a door, so I went to the other one, where you were. After all, if you didn’t know, you would have been just standing there for who knows how long,” Jake lied smoothly. He was getting good at this. Maybe he should have taken drama classes. He would’ve aced them.

“And you going off into the woods?” Laurie asked, still suspicious. Her eyes were locked with Jake’s, and he gave her a small grin.

She caught onto his lie, but she’s going along with it.

“Well, I really just needed some time off. With that new killer, I was a bit freaked out about all those images. So, I needed some time alone to think of something, a way to combat him, but it seemed to be bearing no fruits,” Jake said, smooth once again.

Laurie nodded suspiciously, her eyes narrowing at every word Jake spoke.

“Also, I made a friend.” Jake whistled, and Midnight, luckily, got the signal, and flew around before landing onto Jake’s shoulder.

_“You owe me for this,”_ Midnight said, and Jake smirked.

“You do know that they just serve as the Entity’s surveillance, right?” Meg asked, and Jake nodded.

“Still, they are the most familiar thing to me. They are the only living things that I feel comfortable with. Not that you guys are bad.” Jake had to stop with these possibly passive-aggressive comments at his friends. It would be his ruin one day.

“Well, how about the whole red eye thing?” Meg brought up, before realizing her mistake. She tried to cover it up, but it was too late.

“What red eye thing?” Dwight asked, and Jake flinched. This was going to be rough.

_“Midnight, switch! I’ll tell you what to say!”_ Jake thought in his mind, before he closed his eyes, pretending to take a deep breath.

_“I don’t need you to tell me what to say. I’m you, remember? Chill. I’ll do something.”_ Jake was now in his crow body, and Midnight flicked him up, causing him to fly to a nearby branch. This was exciting, yet scary.

“Well, I told Meg, so I guess I can share it. Remember the one trial where I got sacrificed and appeared weird after it a long time ago?” Feng Min wasn’t part of the group yet then, so only she shook her head while everyone else nodded.

“Yeah, you just collapsed suddenly after the trial, and you began mumbling a bunch,” Dwight explained, and Jake, or Midnight, nodded.

“Well, that wasn’t exactly a normal sacrifice. After I was sacrificed, my soul was brought to the Entity instead of just going back to my body. I met it.” Everyone seemed to be hooked onto the story already, and Jake cheered in his head. Midnight was the best.

“I can’t exactly remember the conversation we had, but when I woke up, things were different. I had this power. I don’t really know how to explain it, but I was able to see through walls, but mostly you guys and killers only. I can’t see other generators, doors, or hooks. And when I do it, my eyes go red.” Midnight explained his power in detail, and everyone listened. No one interrupted.

“Do you mind showing us?” Dwight asked, and Midnight shook his head. He sighed, before closing his eyes and concentrating. When they reopened, they were red, but a new shade. Red on the outside, crimson inside. Everyone wasn’t scared, but more curious, if anything.

“So how do you see us?” Claudette asked, and Midnight took his time to explain.

“Well, all of you are highlighted in green, meaning that you are all healthy with no injuries. If you get injured, it turns to a yellow, and red if you’re downed. The killer is a pinkish red color, and I can see the actions they do, like breaking a pallet, for example. I can also see you guys when you’re doing stuff, like fixing generators.”

“That’s really useful,” Nea added, and everyone agreed.

“I can’t overuse it, though. It causes my eyesight to go wonky and weird, and I won’t be able to keep going for long,” Midnight explained, as he turned his aura vision off. No point on keeping it on for longer that he had to. This wasn’t his body, after all.

“I feel like there’s a ‘but’ coming along,” Ace said, and Midnight smirked.

“Nope, no buts. No idea why I got this power, don’t really mind the side effects, and it’s definitely suspicious. But, currently, still no consequences. Therefore, I’m gonna use it as much as possible.” Everyone seemed happy about that, a silver lining in the hellhole that is the Nightmare.

Jake sighed in relief. That went well, at least. Jake felt the pull switch him with Midnight, and he was back in his body quickly. He stood up, getting everyone’s attention.

“Well, if you don’t mind, I’ll head out now,” Jake said, before turning and entering the woods. He was about to walk when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

“Do you mind if I join you?” Laurie was there, and she had an impassive expression. Jake, knowing that she probably wanted to talk to him about him lying, agreed.

“Come on, then.” Jake went into the forest, Laurie on his trail. He brought her to his spot, before sitting down, patting the ground beside her as a sign for her to sit.

* * *

 

“So?” Jake asked, and she turned to him, a tired expression on her face.

“You know why I’m here. I know a lie when I see it, Jake. There must be a reason why you’re keeping it secret, so I’m more interested in that. Spill.” Laurie was in a no-bullshit mood. She knew what she wanted, and she wasn’t stopping until she got it.

“I just can’t fool you, can I?” Jake asked, and she shook her head. He sighed, before asking Midnight to land beside him. He began to spill everything. Every single detail, exception being the killers and the whole survivors-turn-into-killers thing. That no one needed to know.

“So, let me summarize. You had suspicions about the killers being the same as us, trapped in this hellhole, so you poked around, saw some things you weren’t supposed to, and you got grabbed by the Entity. It, not being happy with all of that, decided to turn you into a killer, giving you powers in the process. It then sent multiple killers in trials, one working as normal and one hunting for you. Therefore, you and your assistant, partner, whatever, Midnight, was it? You guys did some Mission Impossible shit and managed to escape thus far. And you are looking for a way to possibly stop the process, or escape the Nightmare. That’s it?”

Jake nodded, and he and Midnight were slightly scared on how Laurie would act. She could technically just kill them right there. She knew how to stab people. She _taught_ him how to stab people. Laurie was fucking badass, man.

“Well, why am I not surprised? Sounds like some shit the Entity would cook up. I have heard worse. Plus, you’re doing fine, aren’t you? I think it’s okay then, but remember that we want to leave too. We are willing to help, if it means we get the chance of leaving. I’ll leave you to your doings, just, remember that we’re here. No need to be alone on this.” Laurie got up, and Jake smiled, happy that she took it well rather than badly.

“I’ll go now. I won’t tell the others, like Meg.” At that, Jake snorted. Nothing seemed to make it past Laurie’s eye.

“Thanks, Laurie,” Jake said, and Laurie smiled in return. She then walked back towards the campfire, leaving Jake alone once again.

_“Well, that could have gone worse,”_ Midnight said, and Jake slumped onto the tree behind him. Oh, that was exhausting.

“Tell me about it. Thank God Laurie was a sensible and nice lady. It could have gone so much worse if it was someone like Claudette,” Jake muttered to himself, keeping his voice low.

_“So, something has been bothering you. What is it? The barrier?”_ Jake was about to say it, when he realized Midnight said it. He then turned to the bird, a shocked expression on his face.

“ _What? Read your thoughts, remember? I can do that?”_ Midnight said, and Jake had to hide himself for a moment out of sheer embarrassment. How could he have forgotten?

_“Wow, you are really incompetent when I’m not here. How did you manage to survive so far without me?”_ Jake just wanted to die right now. Kill him.

“Can we just move on from this?” Jake whispered, and Midnight laughed.

_“Oh, no. This is going down in history. Someone needs to write this down,”_ Midnight gloated, and Jake growled. Luckily for him, mist began trickling in from around them.

“Oh, thank the Lord,” Jake muttered. This might be the only time he was happy to go into a trial. The mist circled around him once more, signifying his participation in a trial. He has been in a lot of trials recently. Has he missed even one since the powers thing?

No time to dwell on it, though. Jake returned to the campfire to grab a toolbox, and threw in a bottle labeled ‘Murky Reagent’ into the campfire.

Time to get to work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, 500 views. I guess we can celebrate another view count, so suggest stuff. All view requests will be after the story, if I get my ass moving and get to work, or in a different book. Thanks for the support. Still can't believe y'all like this shit.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I might have lied. I did say that there won't be any ships in the canon universe, but I think that might subject to change. Might. Also, I tried establishing characters to the survivors more. Also, this chapter is late as hell. Sorry.

Trials are always fun, Jake thought to himself sarcastically. He has been to almost every arena in these past few trials. Crotus Prenn, Macmillan, Autohaven, Léry’s, Backwater, and Haddonfield. And here he was, in the Coldwind Farms. How lucky of him. One of each.

Jake woke up close to Ace, before he decided to try and leave him. Not that he didn’t like Ace, no, splitting up just seemed like the best option.

“Hey, Jake.” However, before he could, he heard Ace call him. He turned, before seeing Ace gesture him over, towards a generator that they were close to. How Jake missed that, he tried not to notice.

Jake got down and began working. He wasn’t sitting or kneeling, but rather crouching, in case they needed a quick getaway. Although it would be more comfortable and easier to access if they were sitting, living was their top priority.

“Hey, Jake?” Ace whispered. Jake hummed in response over the pistons of the generator. Ace was typically a person who would start up small talk. He couldn’t be idle for too long, or he’ll ‘lose feeling’, or so he said. Jake knew that, of course, so he tried to help his fellow survivor with his problem.

“So, what actually happened to you?” That was not what Jake expected. He almost caused an explosion. What brought this up?

“What do you mean?” Jake asked, but he already knew where the conversation was going to go. Ace had that cocky gambler vibe to him, but he was by no means an idiot. He knew what he was doing, and he could do it well.

“You know what I mean.” And there it is. The side of Ace that one rarely sees. Ace was observant and intelligent. He paid attention to little details, and he could see when something was wrong. He was much like Laurie, in that sense. After getting to know him for a while, Jake gets a more welcome feeling from him, rather than his awful first impression.

Jake first noticed Ace’s abilities rather soon after he joined. Around that time, the Hag, or Lisa, was just introduced to them, and they had no idea how to combat her. She seemed to just appear out of nowhere, and this ability confused them and caused them to be paranoid.

Ace was the first one to notice the Phantasm Traps.

_“Hey, guys, what’s this?” Ace asked, staying low around the weird drawing on the floor. It was a simple design, two lines with a third connecting them, forming a triangle. Anyone could have drawn that._

_“It’s probably nothing,” Meg said, but she kept walking towards the drawing, looking around in case the Hag was close._

_“Wait, stop!” Ace whispered hurriedly, but it was too late. Meg stepped on the drawing, causing the trap to activate. A mud version of the Hag appeared, and it began moving, lunging with its claw. This was no longer a mud copy, but the real Hag._

_“Move!” Ace yelled, as he pushed Meg out of the way, taking a hit. He cried, before running away himself. Meg tapped into her stamina banks and managed to sprint quickly away, leaving the Hag alone._

Ace was definitely underrated in the team. He was, after all, chosen to be a survivor for a reason.

_“You okay?” Jake asked him. Ace groaned, before Jake moved over and tried to patch him up, using the methods Claudette taught him. He saw some plants and herbs around that would work just fine to stop the bleeding. Jake went over to pluck some of them and rubbed them on the wounds, silently thanking Claudette and her botany knowledge._

_“I think I figured out the Hag’s warping,” Ace muttered, and Jake stopped for a moment._

_“She draws these small, simple drawings on the ground. They look like triangles, but when you get close enough, they activate, creating a copy of the Hag, made of mud. I think her ability lies in teleporting into those copies, rather than teleporting in general.” Jake was shocked. Ace could have given him what possibly would have been the way to counter the Hag._

_“How did you know all that?” Jake asked, as he worked on fixing up Ace with the cloth of his jacket and the plants he found._

_“Well, I looked. Observed. Paid attention. Surprising how that could get you so far in life. Also, it seems that crouching down doesn’t set off the traps, for some reason. Try that.” Ace thanked Jake as he finished up the wound treatment, and they separated once more, doing their own thing, yet helping one another._

Ace was definitely essential to the team. His attitude gave them hope, bringing their morale up. However, he knew when to be serious. Yet, he still had a grin on his face, smiling even at the face of death. He truly was one of the bravest people Jake had ever met.

“Well, I’ll tell you later when we get out of this.” Ace nodded, picking up the hint. The rest of the repairing process was filled with small talk about the other survivors, the different killers, and somehow, life aspirations. It was weird.

“Hey, if you don’t mind, can you use that x-ray vision thing? It would be nice to get an identity,” Ace requested, before Jake nodded.

_“Midnight, switch and do your thing, if you would.”_ Jake got an affirmative, before feeling the familiar pull. Jake then lifted off, going to look around and possibly pinpoint where everyone else was, and maybe go investigate a bit. He was mostly curious about that barrier last round.

Midnight channeled his aura vision, and everything cleared up. There was a full squad. Ace, what looked like Claudette, Dwight, and him. The killer was large, but skinny. Philip. The basement was close to the shack, and hooks were littered around the arena, but Midnight managed to find a generator not close to hooks, only one near the vicinity.

“Killer’s the Wraith. We’ve got Dwight, and I’m guessing Claudette. Come with me once we finish this.” Midnight’s authoritative voice channeled, and Ace nodded. He looked slightly confused, but his trust in Jake was enough to overcome that confusion.

The generator soon popped, the rush of electricity lighting the light high above them. Midnight gestured with his hand, keeping his eye out for Philip. It seemed that it was only him, currently, but there was no way of making sure about that.

“Go on ahead, there’s a generator there. I’ll head over once I’m done with this,” Midnight said, as he gestured to the hook to his right. Ace moved on slowly, as Midnight began unwinding the rope and removing the metal keeping the structure up. The hooks in every arena was slightly different, but it was the same method every time. Rope, structure, and fall.

Before long, the hook was down, rendering it useless. Midnight moved on, lowering his aura vision. There was no point for it to be active, if the killer was Philip. He would hear him long before he was here.

Ace was indeed working on the generator, and there was nothing in the vicinity, except that downed hook earlier. Midnight got down, before working on the generator opposite of Ace. A pop in the distance sounded, signaling the finishing of a generator.

* * *

 

Jake was flying towards the outskirts of the arena, trying to find that barrier again. Was it in all maps, or was it just Crotus Prenn? That wouldn’t make sense, though, would it? Just Crotus Prenn?

Jake flew straight out of the border, letting the winds propel him forward. It wasn’t before long that he felt that solid surface that he felt before. There was no doubt, the barrier was on every arena. And it had to serve a purpose.

Jake was just afraid and hopeful of what that was.

Jake flew down, testing how far the barrier spread. He dove under the main piece of arena, and what he found below was definitely a sight.

The world was like a floating island, the roots of the earth just hanging down. The soil turned into a darker shade, before it just turned into a pitch black. There were pieces of rock hovering in the blackness, creating a more fantasy sense to it. It certainly was beautiful, but Jake had no time to be distracted.

Jake followed the wall, going around in a spiral, slowly approaching the dark abyss that was directly below the island. Jake wasn’t ready to dive in the darkness yet, so he returned to the top. This time, he went upwards.

After a while of flying, Jake discovered that the barrier was spread out in a dome, with a possible exit at the bottom. He wasn’t willing to take a chance. He returned to the arena, hearing the pops of the generators.

That darkness bothered him, though. There was something about it that just didn’t sit right with Jake, and he’ll soon have to go and find out for himself what it was. But for now, he needed to return. He heard Midnight’s whistle.

* * *

 

Midnight was currently running from Philip, but just pretend. He vaulted over windows, but Philip managed to nick him in the shoulder, causing Midnight to shout in pain. He kept running, though, not showing any sign of stopping soon. He had a smile on his face throughout the thing, though.

This was what he signed up for.

Midnight ran around the arena, stalling for time for the other survivors. Before long, the loud alarm sounded, signaling the powering of the doors. Midnight grinned, before he sprinted and hopped over a fallen pallet.

Midnight tapped into his aura vision, seeing a door just behind the barn coming up. Two people were there, waiting. The door there must be open, then. On the other side, by the small shack, was the other door. It seems the last person was over there, opening the door.

Midnight had seen enough. He ran towards the open door, pulling down pallets and vaulting over things in the way.

When he got there, Ace and Claudette were at the door. He then looked for Dwight, who was still by the other door. He then turned to Claudette and Ace, his eyes still glowing red.

“Go, I’ll get Dwight.” The command was clear and brief. Ace and Claudette looked worried, but they looked at those eyes, seeing the confidence they held. They nodded, before turning around and running into the mist. Midnight nodded, before slowly walking back in, eyes looking for Philip.

He was over at the other side of the barn, walking around slowly to try and find someone. Midnight took his time in maneuvering around him, and once he couldn’t hear the heartbeat in his ears, he ran towards the door. Dwight was there, waiting.

“Yo,” Midnight greeted. Dwight looked relieved to see him, happy that his friend was safe.

“Where are the others?” Dwight asked, and Midnight pointed into the mist. Dwight smiled, before he turned back to Midnight.

“Before we leave, though, I need to do something,” Midnight said, and Dwight looked confused. Midnight then whistled as loud as he could, causing Dwight to flinch at the loud sound. Midnight smirked at that.

“What was that for!? Are you trying to get the killer to come here!?” Dwight yelled, panicked. Midnight only chuckled, before he felt a familiar presence in the sky. Jake circled around, before landing on Midnight’s outstretched arm.

“Well, let’s go,” Midnight said, as he began running into the mist. Dwight sighed, before following the possessed human. Before he left though, he heard something like a chuckle.

But that was impossible, right?

Dwight shrugged, before running off. He wasn’t just going to stand here and take whatever the Wraith will give him, right?

Dwight ran, but it seemed the mist only got thicker. What was happening? This wasn’t normal. Usually, he would be back at the campfire by now, so what’s new? He kept running, hoping something will happen, instead of just emptiness.

He then felt everything spin, and Dwight’s consciousness began waning. Wait, what? Dwight stopped, falling to his knees. He struggled to keep his eyes open, but it wouldn’t work. Soon, before long, Dwight fell into unconsciousness.

* * *

 

**_“Oh, you’re awake. Splendid. Time for me to begin.”_** A voice echoed into Dwight’s ears. He stirred, feeling the world around him spin and twist and do loop-de-loops. He shook his head, trying to stabilize himself.

Dwight was surrounded by darkness, feeling it suffocate him. Soon, he felt like he couldn’t breathe at all. He coughed, heaved, tried to just get air into his lungs.

“Wha…” he managed to let out, but it didn’t seem to affect whatever that was happening in the slightest.

**_“I apologize for the sudden attack, but I am quite busy, so this might be confusing as heck.”_** Dwight fell onto what he presumed was the floor, but it was really impossible to tell. His lungs were heaving, his eyes watering, his hands grabbing at his throat, trying to force air into it.

**_“I’ll at least tell you what you can do. You’ll have the power of invisibility, much like the Wraith. Don’t you worry, ok? You’ll be fine.”_** Dark spots began growing in Dwight’s vision, as he slowly felt tiredness take over him. It was then when he realized that this was probably what Jake went through.

**_“Oh, no. Jake’s one was a lot more fun. Keeping it the same would be boring, I tell you. It’s nice to see different methods of ‘death’, per say. This is definitely more entertaining,”_** the voice, or, should Dwight say, the Entity, said. This was sick, disgusting, vile, every negative description he could give it. He hated it with every inch of his being.

**_“Well, tell Jake I said hi. He probably will brief you more on the issue. See you around, Dwight Fairfield…”_** The Entity’s voice began echoing, and it sounded further and further after every word. Dwight felt the dark spots take over his vision, and he fell back into the grasp of unconsciousness.

* * *

 

“Dwight!” Jake’s yell shocked Dwight back into consciousness. He took in a deep breath, loving the feeling of air returning into his lungs. Jake’s hands were grasping his shoulders, eyes wide with concern. They were the only one at the fire, everyone else gone.

“Jake…” Dwight muttered, eyes wide, wheezing. He began to see images flash past his eyes, images that were too blurry and confusing to make out what was happening.

“Dwight, I need you to focus!” Jake yelled, and Dwight began focusing on Jake’s words. They were the only things not spinning around right now. Jake began trying to get Dwight to snap out of it, just trying to calm him down in general.

The images slowly began going away, leaving him alone with his ally. However, something new was left in his brain. Something he didn’t like.

“Hey, Jake?” Dwight asked. The two males made eye contact, and Dwight was surprised to see Jake’s eyes were a serene blue, rather than the red or brown he had seen him with.

“What happened?”

Jake sighed. It seemed he anticipated this question. He helped Dwight up, before asking him to follow him. They went into the woods, sitting by a tree relatively far from the fire.

“Well, I’ll keep this short. You just met with the Entity, yeah?” Dwight nodded, and Jake cursed under his breath. Another one.

“I woke up in this darkness, and I heard this voice, which I’m guessing is the Entity’s. I then began to suffocate in the darkness, and I woke up here later. The Entity said something about invisibility and asking you for details, or something. My mind’s still foggy after that whole event.” Jake flinched upon hearing Dwight’s explanation.

“It seems things are going to be different then. Well, where do I start…” Jake proceeded to explain everything to Dwight. Every aspect, every ability, everything. He even pulled out the journal he found, showing Dwight parts of it as he explained. Miraculously, there was no one around to interrupt or eavesdrop on their conversation.

Dwight was speechless as Jake finished. The man had been doing all of this alone? For so long? Dwight found himself with a new respect for Jake, as well as determination to help in any way he can.

After all, if he was destined to be a killer, he won’t go down without a fight.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Voila. I never said Jake was going to be the main character the whole story. I just thought of this yesterday, when writing the chapter. Hope y'all like it. I might also take a short break for a while. I need to get myself in school mode.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi there. I know, I haven't posted a chapter in, like, forever. Sorry about that. But I have a ton of assignments, I almost failed a test, and I got a copy of DBD. I have been playing it nonstop, lost my progress just when I was about to prestige my Dwight, and had to play all over again as Claudette. Awful, but I emailed the devs, and I'm currently hoping I'll get at least some kind of compensation. Anyway, back to the story. Sorry if it seems kinda lackluster, but this is the best I could pump out with all these homework and assignments eating my ass off. I hope the next one will be better.

The two men took their time talking to each other, Dwight getting to know more about Jake and what he does, and Jake getting to know what Dwight can do. It seems the shy man had abilities befitting to his personality. Invisibility seems to be his main ability, similar to the Wraith’s, but it seems Dwight’s was a tier up.

Dwight felt his body shift as he thought about his ability. He channeled his shy personality, and felt the world around him dissolve. When it stopped, the world around was wavy, but Dwight was still able to interact with the things around him. He tapped the tree trunk beside him, feeling the solid wood under his fingertips.

“Interesting. I can barely see you. You camouflage into the darkness very well,” Jake observed.

Jake used his aura vision, his eyes glowing blue as he did. And surprise, he couldn’t see Dwight. There was a faint green glow where he was, which he needed to know where to look for in order to spot it. This would be tough in trials, especially when he needed to locate everyone on the map.

Jake voiced out this concern, and Dwight nodded, slightly concerned.

_“Hey, what am I, chopped liver? I’m here for a reason, dimwit.”_ Jake looked up to where Midnight was, perched on a tree.

_“I’ll search around if you can’t find him. My aura vision is better than yours,”_ Midnight added, while Jake included Dwight in the conversation. Dwight nodded, before reappearing, no changes seen.

“That sounds like a decent idea,” Dwight said, and the duo agreed on the plan. This way, it would be easier to help each other, as well as everyone else.

“Remember to turn visible before approaching the others, though. We don’t need them finding out about this…” Jake said, and Dwight agreed. No one in their group needed to know about this, since everyone already had their own concerns and issues.

“Okay, let’s split. I think I hear people coming, so I’ll head back to the fire. I’ll talk to you more during a trial or something.” Dwight nodded, before walking back towards the fire. He sat down on one of the logs, and it wasn’t long before Claudette and Ace returned.

“How did it go?” Dwight asked. He had to be subtle, in order to not raise suspicion.

“We managed to get out. How about you? Wasn’t Jake with you?” Claudette asked, and Dwight nodded, before pointing over to the trees. Claudette’s eyes widened in understanding, before she nodded and sat beside Dwight.

Ace, however, had another question for him.

“How did you get back here first, even though we left first?” Ace asked, and Dwight stiffened. He did not think about that. He presumed that the other two went on another trial with the rest, but they haven’t?

Dwight paused, trying to think of a somewhat believable excuse to the dilemma he was faced with.

“I found a skeleton key, and we escaped through the hatch.” Dwight turned around, seeing Jake appear from the foliage. He was holding on to what looked like the broken remains of a skeleton key.

Dwight let out a sigh of relief in his mind. It seems Jake has planned a good amount of this. Either that, or he had backup plans from questions asked. He did say he stayed back and talked to the killers. That sounded very interesting, when Jake had painted a non-bloody canvas of the killers in Dwight’s eyes.

Claudette seemed to accept it, but Ace still looked skeptical. Not that Dwight could blame him.

* * *

 

Before long, everyone returned from their trials, and all was back to normal. The group were silent by the fire, thinking about their possible next trial, or what they could do to prep. After all, this entire area was free for them to use. Jake was in the woods again, but Dwight didn’t want to seem suspicious, suddenly going to talk to Jake.

Dwight then decided he needed alone time of his own.

“I’ll be back,” Dwight muttered, before heading into the woods, opposite of where Jake was. He walked for a short while, before sitting down by a tree, facing the bright light of the fire.

This was all so sudden, plunged into the new light of this world. The system behind it all, it was all just plunged into his brain. And just a trial or two ago, he would’ve just focused on survival. But with this new information, things needed to be thought out.

Unwilling, trapped killers. The manipulation of the Entity. Abilities, powers, whatever you want to call it. Time flow, hidden clues. _A possible escape_.

Those words felt so foreign. Escape. He’s been here since the very beginning, when it was just him. He was terrified, scared, petrified, every single emotion portraying fear. Since then, it’s been so long. 7 other survivors – Dwight was still hesitant on calling them friends – to watch his back. Certainly, they needed each other to survive in trials, but what was stopping them from betraying each other just to escape?

Nothing.

Dwight didn’t know these people, and they might as well be strangers. He had no idea what was running through their heads, and if they are voicing every thought they have.

He wasn’t dumb.

_No, stop_ , Dwight thought to himself. Going off this train of doubt was a terrible idea. If he kept going, he wouldn’t be able to trust his fellow survivors ever again.

Not a good idea for a person wanting to live in the Nightmare.

Dwight sighed, collecting his ideas once again. He tried testing his powers again. He felt his body melt into the darkness, but his vision wasn’t affected. He was still able to feel the material world under his body, and it seems he can interact with it decently.

Dwight stretched his right arm in front of him. It was a deep shade of black, hiding him amongst the darkness. He looked down on his clothes, and it seems his office shirt and pants were also the same shade of black. You could tell the difference from him and the darkness, once you look hard enough. The darkness was a more pitch black, while Dwight was more of a jet or onyx black. It’s hard, but there definitely is a difference.

Dwight took off his glasses, before closing his eyes and tilting his head up. He took a deep breath, feeling the surprisingly clear air of the Nightmare fill his lungs. This felt nice. Just away from the running, surviving, escaping. Just him alone in the woods, appreciating nature for what it is.

It put Dwight at a sort of peace, and always manages to calm him down. Very cliché, but these moments truly made him happy. Alone, away from all the trouble. It wouldn’t last long, but it felt amazing.

And speak of the devil. The fog began rolling in, so Dwight put on his glasses and deactivated his power. The fog began circling around him, Dwight slowly losing consciousness.

Here we go, I guess.

* * *

 

Dwight got up once the fog around him dissipated. It was The Macmillan Estate, not one of his favorites, but it’ll do. The darkness would certainly serve as a way for him to test his abilities.

He went and worked on a generator close to him, slowly but surely making progress. His mind, however, wandered, as his hands did the task that he has been doing over and over again ever since he first came here.

Dwight thought about what Jake told him, regarding the killers. According to him, the killers were as trapped as they are, in this never-ending hell. If they don’t do their work, if they don’t kill, they’ll get tortured, mangled, and be forced to do it again.

If so, then why didn’t they try to communicate with the survivors? Leave notes, clues, whatever, just so they could pick up on something. But no, it had just been attacks, strikes, kills. They showed no remorse doing it whatsoever, so how could Dwight trust Jake’s opinion on this?

Dwight heard the approaching heartbeat, before instinctively moving away slowly to hide behind some trees. It was then that Dwight realized he had a mind fart.

He can go invisible, duh.

Time to test this out, Dwight thought to himself. He activated his powers, feeling darkness surround and take over his body. He delved into the shadows, before he left the shadow of the tree. He moved slow, hearing the heartbeat’s volume increase exponentially.

The killer was close, very close.

And there they were. The Wraith, in a pile of ripples, close to the generator. This raised Dwight’s suspicion. Wait, the Wraith’s invisible, so how was Dwight able to hear the heartbeat? Normally, he wouldn’t have been able to, seeing as the Wraith was near undetectable when cloaked.

“Oh, well how nice to see you here.”

Dwight froze, hearing the foreign, yet somehow familiar voice. It was rough, yet had a kind of calm to it. You really had to focus to hear the underlying tone of care and, weirdly, sadness.

Dwight turned around to see the Wraith, standing there, unarmed. The bottom half of the Wraith was wavy and translucent, yet solid and present at the same time. Dwight immediately panicked, falling onto his butt on the floor. He prepared for the feeling of a club hitting his body.

However, after a while, seeing as the Wraith didn’t move out to strike, or even move at all, Dwight slowly began to look up, seeing the Wraith look at him, a grin on his face.

“Don’t you worry. I’m not here to hurt you. _He_ is.” The Wraith pointed to the ripples, that were still there, strangely enough. Dwight looked as it uncloaked, revealing another Wraith, as it damaged the generator he was working on. It then cloaked, ringing its bell loudly, before disappearing into ripples once more.

“Wait, what? Aren’t you here? And there?” Dwight managed to say, somehow not stuttering. Somehow, when he was in the dark, he felt comfortable. And the Wraith’s presence somehow made it better, strangely enough.

“Well, to start off, call me Philip, please. Call _that thing_ the Wraith. Now, walk with me. The others can’t see us, so don’t worry about that.” Philip offered Dwight a hand, and Dwight hesitantly grabbed it. Philip pulled Dwight up to his feet, and they walked aimlessly.

* * *

 

“So, mind explaining everything?” Dwight asked, keeping an eye out for the ripples that would signify the Wraith’s presence.

“Gladly. I’m sure Jake had already told you about things. How we’re sentient human beings, we’re trapped, his possible deductions, et cetera. What he didn’t know is that sometimes, our killing personas are different from who we are. For example, me right now. My killing persona the Entity grabbed, the Wraith, as you call it, is out there, killing and shedding blood. Meanwhile, me, perfectly sane and reasonable Philip, is right here. We are the same, yet completely different,” Philip explained.

Dwight tried to grasp his mind around the concept.

“So, it’s similar to how Jungian psychology portrays the mind? A persona, of sorts? This character in your mind is somehow materialized, and you, the main host, is pushed back and suppressed by the Entity?” Dwight asked. His degree in psychology and therapy will get him somewhere, dammit.

“Yes, but not quite. See, it’s not that the Wraith materialized and took over me. Oh, I can take back control anytime. However, it’s more beneficial for us if he took control. That way, we won’t get questioned by the Entity for our weird actions, like not hitting a person, and stuff like that. Usually, we give free reign to our crazy selves, and try to look around, find something to help us in any way. And we get pushed into this realm. However, there are exceptions.”

“We usually will snap back into control after a match, or during some trials. If possible, we’ll try to allow you all to get out free, so a piece of your souls won’t get consumed. But that isn’t going to happen every match, sadly.” Philip glanced over to the wreckage remaining of the Ironworks of Misery. The walls and ceiling were banged up, having holes in them. Philip glanced at them with a sad and longing expression in his eyes, before he glanced back at Dwight.

“I don’t know why you’re telling me all of this, honestly. How are you sure that I won’t tell the other survivors?” Dwight voiced the question in his head, trying to avoid making eye contact with Philip. After all, he basically just said that he would betray him.

“Oh, I know you won’t. And even if you did, who’d believe you? I’m willing to take that risk.” Philip sat down on the windowsill, and Dwight sat by the wall, close to Philip’s feet.

“Plus, I can tell that you know how the issue is here. You know that we have to be secretive about it, or _he_ will get upset.” Philip pointed a finger upwards, and Dwight immediately knew who he was talking about.

The Entity.

“You should go. I can’t occupy you for long. _He_ might get curious as to why you aren’t back in existence yet. I’ll be here, so don’t worry about me. I’m rooting for you, Dwight. So, hurry up back, alright?” Philip said, pulling Dwight up to his feet.

“Well, thanks, Philip? It still feels weird, but I think I can get used to this. I’ll see you around, I guess.” Dwight waved at Philip, who waved back, before he phased back into the material world. He got to work on the generator in the factory, and he felt eyes watching him. It was a reassuring feeling on his back, feeling like a friend has his back, even though no one was there, and Philip couldn’t intervene.

* * *

 

It was then when he heard the dreaded heartbeat that he learned to hate. Wait, when did it stop? He remembered hearing it when he first met Philip, but it vanished sometime during their conversation.

Regardless, Dwight hid, camouflaging into the darkness, but not using his ability. He was feeling slightly drained from the experience of using it for that long, and the effects was causing him to go slightly lightheaded. He was fine, though. Nothing some adrenaline won’t cure.

He expected the Wraith’s growls to reach his ears, but he heard something else. Something that he has learned to hate with every sliver of his soul.

The deep breathing of Michael Myers.

He knew that Michael’s vision could pierce through the darkness, and draw power from just watching. He had to avoid his line of sight, or just hope he wasn’t watching him right now.

Dwight watched from the corner he was bent over in, as Michael slowly walked past, glancing around slightly. Fortunately, Michael didn’t seem to be turning around, or he would have seen him.

Dwight held in a breath as Michael stopped, right before he left the building. He just stood there for a moment, while Dwight just tried to back up more, even with the wall on his back, hoping that it will somehow help him not get seen.

But, it seemed luck wasn’t in his favor today. Michael glanced back, and Dwight felt his energy slightly leaving him, an overwhelming presence on his back. Damn it, he knew he should have burned that freaking salt statuette to increase his luck.

Dwight then widened his eyes as Michael raised his knife high above his head. Michael rushed towards him, and Dwight barely dodged the blow as he ran out of his corner. He leaped over the window, and while Michael was rounding the corner of the ironworks, Dwight activated his ability, stepping into the darkness. He felt it consume him, as he stopped by a tree, trying to catch his breath.

Turning around, his back to the tree, he watched as Michael turned around, only to stop when he saw no trace of Dwight. The knife-bearing killer slowly strolled, keeping his ears and eyes sharp for any sign of the survivor he managed to lose.

Dwight sighed as Michael slowly walked past him, his heartbeat still roaring in his ears. He slowly walked away from that area, before phasing back into existence. He approached a generator, and got to work, a small grin on his face.

This power could be their best advantage yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eyy, comment below what you thought. I honestly am happy to see what you guys think, whether positive or negative. It helps improve my writing, so I can do better. Thanks and bye.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I have no excuse. I was lazy. Oh well, it keeps the cliffhangers going. Even if I don't really write cliffhangers that much. On the offchance that I do. Regardless, an update. I've been playing DBD a ton, actually. That's really it. And I went on vacation. In this chapter, I try something different, kind of. Shows more of Jake's broody and angsty self. I try to include all the other survivors, but they feel a bit awkward, to be honest. You can see by my writing style, that I'm just choosing a few and focusing on them. Also, I need you guys' opinion on something.

“So, how did your first trial with your powers go?” Jake asked him after the trial.

Dwight couldn’t find the words to describe the event. It turns out it was just the two of them in that trial, versus the two killers; Michael and the Wraith. They both managed to escape, but it was cutting close.

* * *

 

_“Get it open! Hurry!” Jake yelled, as Dwight held down the lever powering the door. The sound of sirens filled the air, as the door slowly began to open. However, they had a Michael right behind him, with the Wraith definitely not far. Jake was jumping through the windows of walls close to the door, taunting and distracting Michael, giving Dwight the time he needed._

_“Let’s go!!” Dwight yelled, as Jake charged towards the door, his left hand grasping his side, where the Wraith’s weapon managed to injure him. On his tail was Michael, his body tense, as his steps began growing in size, the knife twirling in his fingers._

_Dwight stood by the door, ready to intercept and take a hit for Jake if he needed to. One hit was definitely not enough to disable him, so he could take one. Jake ran straight, not even daring to look back, not noticing the ripples in front of him._

_Jake heard the dreaded bell of the Wraith, as it appeared right in front of him. It had it weapon poised, ready to strike. Jake braced for the attack he knew was coming._

_“JAKE!” As soon as Jake heard the yell, he opened his eyes, seeing his friend take the hit, some of Dwight’s blood splatter onto his cheek. Jake’s eyes widened, before they hardened, as he ran with new vigor, Dwight right beside him._

_When Dwight saw Jake falling back, he placed an arm around his shoulder, and the both of them managed to support each other, while avoiding the killers and attempting to stun them with the pallets. They even used Midnight to attack the Wraith once._

“I’m sorry, WHAT?!” _The bird had yelled out. However, before the crow could react, Jake grabbed him roughly and threw him at the Wraith, causing the Wraith to be stunned, and the duo to escape its view. There was a very angry crow following them for the rest of that trial._

* * *

 

That was definitely too close for comfort, Dwight thought to himself with a shudder.

“Well, it’s interesting, with this new concept. But, I can see trials getting much easier,” Dwight replied, and Jake sent him a grin.

“Oh, it gets a lot easier. It’s much easier to maneuver around when you know what to do, and no one to stop you. Or you know where to avoid.” Jake grinned, and Dwight nodded in agreement. He then decided to talk about the new information he gained.

“Split personas?” Jake said to himself, and Dwight nodded. It was definitely a weird concept to wrap your head around, but tit definitely made sense when you think about it. That would explain the split in characters from the wonderful people he sees after trials, compared to the bloodthirsty killers they are during a trial.

“Yeah. It seems weird at first, but it fits, doesn’t it?” Dwight said, and Jake nodded. They were both by the foliage, waiting for the others to return from their trials.

“I guess so.” Jake pulled out the journal, before writing the information down on the back side of the book. He kept his notes and Benedict’s separate, so to not confuse which came from whom.

_Split personas, separated when entering trials. Host sent into spirit world, able to interact with Dwight,_ he wrote in point form. Jake’s handwriting was actually quite neat, and definitely pleasing to watch for Dwight.

“Anything else you discovered?” Jake asked, and Dwight told him about the heartbeat he heard, and how even the cloaked Wraith couldn’t see him.

“So, you could hear the Wraith’s heartbeat, even though he was cloaked? That’s very useful. You’re basically our counter to the Wraith. You can sense him easily, and he can’t sense you.” Dwight felt slightly proud of his abilities, being able to be of use to their cause. However, he didn’t notice Jake’s sad smile as he wrote his findings in Dwight’s column.

_And I can’t do anything…_

_I feel so useless…_

* * *

 

Laurie returned from her trial, blood still all over her navy blue office shirt. It was comfortable, yes, but not as much as her sweater that laid in a box by the campfire, along with everyone’s other clothes. She managed to barely escape Michael’s grasp, stabbing him with a broken piece of a pallet, and ran out with her soul intact.

She sat by the campfire, waiting for the rest to return. She was slightly worried on Jake and Dwight, who got sent into a trial by themselves. However, they should have returned by now, seeing as they have been gone for a while before Laurie got took into a trial. However, the campfire was empty, and Dwight was not where he usually was.

This left Jake.

She walked into the forest, back to the place where Jake first brought her, where he spilt all of his secrets, and the whole turn into killer thing. Not that that is going to change her views of him.

He is still, primarily, a friend. An ally. And until something changes about Jake, that’s probably not going to change at all.

She was walking to the spot when she heard whispers. She paused, allowing the sounds to reach her ears clearly.

_‘So, you could hear the Wraith’s heartbeat, even though it was cloaked?’_

There were some other mutterings, but Laurie wasn’t able to make out the rest. She didn’t care, if she was honest. If they found it important, they would tell her. She believed that Jake would do what’s best for the group.

Laurie returned to the fire, sitting back by the logs. She got out some of the supplies Claudette had gathered and left by the side of the fire, and tried to patch herself up as much as she could, with her limited knowledge in botany and medical care. Claudette have gave them the okay to use the resources, and that just to be careful to not use too much.

“Hey, Laurie.” Laurie turned her head, seeing Ace and Meg returning. They didn’t have much injuries, just a few scratches, and a bigger gash on Meg’s shoulder. Laurie smiled in relief, before waving them over to patch them up.

Soon, everyone slowly trickled back, and the group returned to their dynamic. Heal, help others, and rest. Whatever you do, just prepare for a trial anytime.  That was what made sure that they were ready, and that they will live.

* * *

 

Jake was alone, deep in the woods. Open on his lap was the journal, with two columns. One was titled ‘Jake’, and the other was titled ‘Dwight’. Dwight’s column was filled with notes, plans, ideas, while his was just a few jot notes about his ability.

He was deep in thought, different things running through his mind. Ideas of how to live, using the different abilities they had. But his mind was preoccupied by the negative thoughts in his head.

_Dwight is so much better than you._

_What can you do?_

_You can’t even do anything._

Jake shook these thoughts out of his head. No, that would be playing into the Entity’s hands. And that’s the last thing he needed. No, he won’t be affected by these thoughts.

Jake looked back down on the journal in his lap. There was one entry that seemingly described the Doctor, or Herman. It was short, but it stated enough for Jake to guess who it was describing.

_“I have difficulty keeping my sanity. Each day, this altering world provides me with new trials. A man wearing the robes of a doctor crossed my path. From afar, I witness him walking around, searching.. But he was not...normal. Eyes and mouth pried open, in a painful and disturbing way. Where do these fiends stem from? I do not trust him, he looks like he wants to bring pain, not healing? I will stay away, it is the wisest thing to do.”_

Jake read softly to himself, voice barely above a whisper. This made him ponder on if the Entity got all of them at once, or was it a procedural thing. Did he introduce them one at a time, or all in one, in Benedict’s case?

Jake thought about their group, and what they had to offer for the Entity. Why was it specifically them who was chosen? There were so many others, others who probably had much higher hopes in their souls, if that was what it feeds upon. So why them?

Jake had always been quite depressed in life. Not to the point where he wanted to kill himself, oh no. But definitely so that it would be weird for him to be chosen. To the point where he didn’t really quite have much hope in his soul left. After all, he was driven to the point where he basically had to rebel and live in the woods all by himself. Jake grumbled to himself, wondering why exactly was he the chosen one. What he did to deserve this recognition.

He sighed, closing the book, and closed his eyes. He tilted his head upwards, feeling the rough bark of the tree on his scalp. His mind was filled with thoughts, emotions, all running at the speed of light. He couldn’t concentrate, not with everything happening.

He was thrust back into reality when he heard the gripping voice of the Entity resound in his head.

**_“It seems you have many questions…”_** the Entity muttered deeply, sending a chill down Jake’s spine. He hesitated in answering, not sure what the Entity could be planning here.

**_“Oh, don’t worry. I’m not here for anything malicious, I promise you,”_** it said, and Jake snorted.

“Please, you haven’t really proven yourself as trustworthy, you know. Setting up this entire situation, for one,” Jake muttered, and the Entity seems to be laughing in his mind.

**_“Touché. Alright then, don’t take my word for it. But, I can tell you I chose you, all of you, for a very specific reason. One that no one seems to have discovered yet. Not even you, Jake.”_** Jake held in a grunt of frustration.

“Mind telling me what it is?” Jake asked, even though he knew the answer that he would get in return.

**_“Yes. Don’t you worry, though. You’re getting close, with your cute little ‘investigation’. You know what, I’ll even make it simpler for you.”_** Before the Entity could explain what he meant, Jake felt his presence leave his mind, replaced by the voice of his ever-loving crow buddy.

_“Well, I’m more interested in this ‘making it simpler’,”_ Midnight said, before he curled up by Jake’s feet.

“I agree. Whatever this is, it won’t be making it any easier, I’ll tell you that.” Jake said, no hesitation in his voice. There was no way the Entity would assist them. Why would it? They were basically finding a way to rebel and overthrow it, and get out of its realm.

_“We don’t know that. The Entity is unpredictable, and we can’t pinpoint what its true purpose of doing all of this. If he just wanted the hope of humans, he could just pluck any random person off the street, but why drag them into this huge game of cat and mouse? By reusing the same people over and over in a trial, isn’t that good? It’s reducing the total amount of victims this way, no?”_ Midnight certainly had a point there. If the Entity just needed hope from humans, then it could have just as easily ate so many hobos and people off the street. So what was the point of all of this? Why were they here?

“You’re onto something there, Midnight. I feel like we’re getting somewhere. Keep going,” Jake ushered, and Midnight was happy to continue.

_“My hypothesis is that the Entity needs something else, something other than hope. It picked its killers by influencing them, making them kill, before bringing in them as survivors. They then had something it needed, the reason why it did all of this. But what could that be? That thing is the key to this puzzle, I think. We could also bring up the question of why weren’t you guys driven to the point of killing, like the killers. That’s something we need to consider, too.”_ Jake jotted all of this down. This was a huge breakthrough, one that they needed to continue these investigations. One to show that they were doing something. Something closer to that escape they needed.

* * *

 

Jake returned to the campfire, seeing as he should spend time with the others. After all, just thinking about escaping for hours isn’t going to get anything out of his mind. He returned to see everyone back, all looking quite tense. He didn’t blame them, there have been more and more trials, after Jake and Dwight got their abilities. Claudette then chose to speak up.

“So, how’s everyone?” That got a few chuckles out of everyone. They knew exactly how everyone’s doing. After all, they’re a team, and teams need to know each other, if they wanted to survive.

“Perfectly snazzy,” Dwight muttered, causing Meg and Jake, the only ones close enough to hear it, snort.

“I’ve got a spare medkit, who wants it?!” Nea said in her best sales voice, causing more people to grin. Ace then raised his hand, and Nea tossed the medkit over.

“Thanks, have a flashlight. God knows I suck at using it,” Ace said, causing Jake to chuckle. Ace really did suck with the flashlight, blinding himself half the time.

With just that small exchange, everyone’s mood was significantly better. Everyone was smiling, and the morale of the group was so much better. Everyone felt relaxed, and they all felt safe, like there was hope. Like this wasn’t going to end like this. No, it just felt like one big camping trip. No killers, no weird spider god, nothing. Just them, and no one else.

Jake chuckled to himself. This was nice, even in the midst of despair. The shining light to the abyss of darkness. Light and dark, hope and despair, they all are coexisting ideals, aren’t they?

And then his brain caught up.

“That’s it!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, should I add an OC? I'm considering it, but I know some people don't really like OCs in stories. So, I would like to see how many people would be interested in an OC. I made up a survivor, and I'm contemplating adding a killer, but I probably won't. Probably, not confirmed. Anyway, I'll get working on Chapter 14, since I need to get off my lazy ass to do shit.


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